Sisterhood
by AiJay
Summary: Edward and Alphonse are happily living in Resembool, but the mysterious force of the Doors of Truth have not entirely left their lives, yet! What happens, when two girls from a seemingly peaceful, pleasant world have been illegally transmuted to Amestris? And what happens when their very existence threatens to take apart ALL worlds?
1. Chapter 1

FMA Sisterhood- Prologue

Jay sat impatiently on the park bench, randomly wondering how much more boring the day could get. She sat, staring at the Big Ben, the very prize of London before her, but years in a wealthy mansion, her bedroom window over looking the view, had already taken most of the excitement out of it. She was about to sigh in frustration, but a spark of excitement crashed through the air. Hair standing on end, Jay watched helplessly as a sudden flash of electricity seemed to take apart the world around her. She thought she saw a mob of people, and then a face- no, just an eye-, but her vision was clouding, and everything around her went bright white, then black.

When she awoke, the air felt colder and drier. Jay knew she was lying on the ground, but couldn't seem to stand up. It seemed as if the world had shattered apart, but something quickly brought her back to her senses. She moved her hand, but something didn't seem right. Her palm was warmer than the rest of her, and there was a thick scent of rust and salt...

"BLOOD?!" she screamed, eyes widening.

Chapter 1

The door to the in slammed open, with a teary-eyed, sweaty-haired ten year old boy standing at the entrance.

"Help!" he cried desperately. "I need somebody's -anybody's- help! There's been report of illegal alchemy and human transmutation. I'm afraid someone's hurt, and the medics are closed. Can anybody help?"

Despite the thick crowd of people, the room remained pindrop silent.

"Alchemy?" Somebody mused under his breath.

"Hurt?" his counterpart exclaimed, slightly more concerned.

"Really!" The boy cried, his voice getting more hysterical. "Is the price of a human soul not worth your time and attention!"

The two partners glanced at each other, their silent decision bound by the small child's philosophy. "We volunteer to help," they said in unison.

The boy turned to the voices with delight, but his expression fell as soon as he saw his saviors.

The first was a 15 year old boy with blonde hair kept in a loose french braid, and daring copper eyes that asked for both a bit of adventure and trouble. "Edward Elric, Fullmetal Alchemist, at your service," he introduced himself.

The second volunteer was only 14 years old, and already taller than his brother. They shared a huge family resemblance, but his hair was clipped short and a darker caramel color. "Alphonse Elric, the-" He paused in mid-sentence. "No, I don't have a special title. Alphonse Elric, here to help."

"But..." the child protested, voice trailing. The two brothers stood, anticipating. "I guess I was hoping for someone more professional. This could be a serious problem, and you two aren't that much older than me."

Edward glared, but Alphonse ignored the comment. "Trust us," he assured the child. "We're more experienced in medics than we look. We've studied that field for years."

With no other help available, the boy, in sheer desperation, accepted the volunteers, not knowing that he had really selected the best people, the only people, possible for the task.

"Too experienced," Edward muttered under his breath as the trio left the inn. He glanced don at his hands, wearing a long sleeved cloak and leather gloves, despite the pleasant weather. With the material covering his arms, he could almost convince himself that he was a normal teenager, with a normal life.

Almost.

"So," Al asked as they walked away from the town. "Who gave you this alchemy business?"

"I was playing in the field," he said, pointing into the distance. "And there was suddenly a flash of light. It looked like lightning at first, but there isn't a cloud in the sky. So what else could it have been, besides alchemy? Ma ran over to see what was wrong, and then she told me and Sue to find help. She wasn't able to call an ambulance, so we all tried to find someone to help."

"How bad was the injury?" Alphonse asked, walking slightly faster.

"Dad says it wasn't a hopeless case," the boy said, also picking up pace. "But it could get infected if we don't help it right away. He said a side wound, but no internal organs were damaged. I never got to see myself, but I'm not certain I want to..." he shuddered at the image, and Al patted his head in sympathy.

"You don't," he assured him.

The three walked a few hundred meters further into the field of grass before stopping. "This is as far as I go," the boy said. "There should be a dirt clearing 30 meters ahead, where the circle was drawn out. I don't want to see the injury or anything."

"We understand," Alphonse said, continuing to walk forward. Edward was silent, scowling as he pushed his way ahead through the waist-tall grass.

"Help.." a voice called from the distance a few moments later.

"This way," Edward said, moving even faster. "I think I can see the transmutation circle..."

"And the person inside it," Alphonse finished, right at his heels.

The two stumbled into the clearing, and found themselves facing a small girl with dark messy hair, and her head in her hands. She looked up as soon as she heard them, but her eyes were hidden by long, uneven bangs. Her voice was rough, and nearly cracked with surprise. "Can you help?" she choked.

A bit past the mist, there was another figure. While the girl herself was fine, evidence suggested that not everything would be okay.

Her tone changed drastically to a near-tear voice. "I don't know what happened. I was suddenly here... And Shinko-Chan is hurt. I can't help her, and I don't know what to do." She was shaking, her hands visibly clammy, and her breathing short and rapid.

"We'll help as much as possible," Alphonse assured her, walking to the transmutation circle. There was another figure inside, wincing in pain. The majority of the circle was covered in blood, from a deep gash in her side. She was laying down on her back, but managed to turn ever so slightly to see the new company. Her long hair was matted and tangled, and sprawled all around her.

"I can heal her using the circle," Alphonse decided. "But if she faints from blood loss, she'll have to heal regularly, and might come to within a few hours."

"Please, do it," the dark-haired girl begged. Her voice was grave, and the bits of emotion in it were concerned and hopeless.

"Stand back," Alphonse commanded. Edward guided her outside of the chalk-drawn circle. Al clapped his hands together, then placed them on the ground. There was a flash of bright blue light, like a lightning bolt, and Edward and the girl were thrown back from the force of energy.

"Alphonse!" Edward exclaimed, sitting up. His cream colored gloves were stained with a shock of black, burnt material, and the air smelled like burnt flesh.

"Sorry, Nii-San," Al apologized halfheartedly, unscathed. "I've never used a circle 20 feet in diameter before. You guys were standing too close."

The girl had tumbled on to her knees, but she stayed, unmoving. "I don't understand," she said, looking down. Jumping to her feet, she ran to her friend, whose eyes were closed peacefully as if nothing had happened. There wasn't a trace of blood anywhere. "How?" she asked, disbelieving.

Edward took a deep breath. "We'll explain this to you the best we can," he assured her. "You're pretty far from your home. Possibly the furthest you'll ever be." he stepped towards the transmutation circle. "Al, it's got the symbol of truth on it," he pointed. "That means she's from behind the doors."

Al put a hand on his chin in thought. "Where was it..." he mumbled. Turning to the girl, he spoke again. "Were you anywhere near... not Tokyo... The Big Bentley clock tower?"

"Yes," she said, confused. "Shinko-Chan and I always meet there on Mondays. It gets a little boring after a while, but I never expected anything like this. You said I was far away from there, but yet you knew where I was. So where am I now?"

"In a parallel dimension," Edward said casually. Al slugged his arm, but he ignored it. "If you don't believe us, just take a look at your friend. She was just brought back from a near death experience, and everything looks the same as it was before, no?"

The girl stared wide-eyed, confusion still not shaken. "It doesn't make any sense," she whimpered.

"It doesn't have to," Edward said coldly. "Right now, we just need to get you home."

The girl nodded silently, head down.

"Today was our last day at the inn," Alphonse confessed, scooping Shinko into his arms.. "So we'll have to stay at the Rockbell's until we're ready to move. I just hope they're okay with the accommodations."

"I AM MOST CERTAINLY NOT OKAY WITH IT!" Winry shouted. There was a loud crash, the sound of breaking glass, and a small thud indicating that the wrench had hit the ground. "Just who do you think you are!?" She continued. "Grandma is out for a business trip, I just got this place cleaned up, and now I have to bunk with you! Give me one reason why I should have not thrown the wrench!"

"Hold up!" The dark-haired girl exclaimed, tone frantic but calm. "I didn't ask to bunk, and who said I was going to mess things up? Plus, I might not have been able to dodge the wrench," she added under her breath. She was right beneath the hole in the window, bits of glass falling into her hair.

Winry sat on her bed and put her head in her hands. "And to add to the list, Edward-kun likes you," she moaned.

"Which one is Edward?" The girl asked from behind her bangs.

"The drop-dead gorgeous one."

"Uhhh..."

"The blonde."

"Oh."

"We've been friends for the longest time," she curled up and hugged her legs. "How did I manage to get beaten by some poor, little girl?" The girl didn't respond, but she was at least a full 5 inches shorter than Winry. Her dark hair was a striking contrast to Winry's blonde pigtail, and her eyes were hardly visible behind her bangs, whereas Winry's eyes shown bright and blue and sparkling.

"So, what's your name?" Winry asked after a moment, rapidly changing her subject of thought.

"I'm Jay," Jay said quietly, looking at the floor. "And I apologize for being here. I understand this must be hard for you, two random strangers showing up out of nowhere, with high demands. I'm sorry for all of this."

Winry stood up and laughed. "Don't worry. This is one of the easier jobs that the boys have picked out for me. You're cute, but you don't have to act so shy."

Jay sighed, relaxing. "I'm shy because I'm awkward. Normally I have Shinko-Chan apologize, because I don't know how."

"Speaking of Shinko-sama," Winry began. "How's she doing?"

Alphonse nodded his head, so Jay knocked softly on the bedroom door before they both entered. "Psst..." Jay whispered. "Is anyone awake?"

"Mm...?" Shinko peeked one eye open, and then blinked the sleep from both. "Wha... Where am I..." The moment she realized she was awake, her eyes widened and her hand flew to her side. "My wound- I'm healed!"

"Shinko-chan," Jay muttered. "You just got all your energy back, you don't need to deplete it..."

"You don't feel light-headed or anything?" Alphonse asked.

"It was so bloody and gross!" Shinko exclaimed, ignoring them both. "I was so certain I was going to die..." She squinted and turned to Alphonse. "Was it you who healed me?"

"Yeah, I guess you could say that," he rubbed the back of his neck modestly, and Jay nodded her head in agreement.

"Omigosh!" Shinko cheered. "You're totally my hero!"

"Really?" Alphonse asked hopefully, blushing slightly.

"Yeah!" Shinko went on. "Like a night in shining armor!" Jay looked at the two together. They were both tall, at least, compared to her, yet Alphonse managed to stand at least a head taller than even Shinko. Shinko had long brown hair, although not as light as Alphonse's, and wide gray eyes. Alphonse had a more hazel tone, but they were still cute together.

"I can see it," Jay said to Shinko, who squealed with joy, while Al stood clueless to their silent conversation.

"So..." Alphonse asked awkwardly. "Are you guys hungry? Dinner should be about ready by now."

"Sure," they said in sync. Shinko giggled, and even Jay suppressed a smile as they headed down the stairs.

"Uhhh..." Edward said, opening the fridge. "There's nothing to eat..."

Winry bounded over and looked over his shoulder. "Al, wasn't it your turn to go shopping?" She asked, sighing.

"No, I thought it was yours," he shrugged innocently.

Shinko walked over to the fridge. "What are you guys talking about?" She asked. "There's enough for a feast here!" She stared up and down at the shelves of leeks, miso, soba flour, milk, fruit, and broth.

"Well, there might be if any of us knew how to cook," Winry blushed sheepishly. "Normally Grandma is here, but-"

"Do you mind if Jay and I cook?" Shinko asked.

"But you guys were just randomly transported from a parallel dimension-" Winry ducked as Shinko rummaged through the fridge, tossing the ingredients behind her, Jay struggling to catch and sort everything. "We'll have miso soup and rice," Shinko announced.

"Are you sure you really want to-" Winry continued, only to be shushed by Shinko.

"Relax," Shinko said. "It must be hard on your hands, having two, um, I wouldn't even use the word guests, randomly transported to your home from a parallel dimension. If there's anything we can do to help, we'll begin working on it right away." As proof, she hurriedly ran around the kitchen, already beginning to boil and bake different ingredients.

"Sorry about this all," Jay said to Winry, chopping vegetables to help with the process. "I know it really isn't average... But if we stay here any longer, such things are to be expected of Shinko-Chan. She just works that way."

"Staying longer?" Winry asked. "Do you like it here, with all this?" She gestured to the shabby house.

"Um, that's not what I meant," Jay said, reddening. "Although your place is very nice, I just thought-"

"Hah!" Winry laughed. "That's so cute! You're shy, and nervous! But am I really that intimidating? I don't mean to put that much pressure on my acquaintances..."

"Even though she totally puts pressure on her acquaintances," Edward and Alphonse nodded together. Winry hit them both over the head with a screwdriver.

"The point here is," Winry smiled after a moment. "We understand things can be hard. As long as you're with us, we're here to help you. Consider yourself part of the family."

"What?" Shinko asked, looking up from her cooking. "You mean this is all the family you have?"

"We're all orphans," Winry said politely, her tone not suggesting anything. "But I'm working as a mechanic apprentice under my Grandma, when she's here. A lot of people need her work out there."

"Wow, she must be a pretty good mechanic," Jay said, turning the topic of conversation smoothly. "Which means you're a good apprentice. Do you have any of your work here?" The house appeared strangely old fashioned, with limited evidence of any technology.

"I've been a clockwork apprentice for nearly all my life," Winry smiled. "I'm so glad you're interested in it! Edward, why not you help explain?"

"My world is being taken over by machine maniacs," Edward grumbled, stepping up anyway. He yanked off the glove of his right hand, and Shinko and Jay stared in horror.

"Your hand..." Shinko squeaked. "Is... is made of metal!"

"Are metal prosthetic limbs not common in your world?" Alphonse asked. "Because it's not just his hand, it's his whole arm. And half his left leg." Edward happily took off his cloak, beaming as he held his arm out.

"We do have prosthetic limbs-" Shinko started.

"Well, I bet they're not as cool as mine!" Edward grinned. He tapped a metal guard above the clockwork on his forearm. "Because your world can't use alchemy." He ran his hand along the guard, and sparking electricity seemed to morph it into a different shape- into a blade.

"Oh.. my... goodness..." Shinko said carefully, her face pale. "Why can you turn your arm into a sword?"

"Are you asking about the alchemy?" He asked. "Or why I would need a sword? Because honestly, the latter isn't a very smart question."

"Edward!" Winry shouted at him. "Why must you be so rude all the time?! Put the blade away and stare at a glass of milk!"

"Why stare?" Alphonse asked, continuing to help with the kitchen as if nothing had happened.

"Has he changed his mind and decided he's gonna drink it?" She sighed, turning back to Shinko and Jay. "I'm sorry for all of this... I can assume, whatever world you live in, that this is most likely outside of the social norm. Are you handling it okay?"

Shinko nodded blankly, but Jay stared off into the distance.

"Jay?" Winry asked. "Jay? Jay!?"

Jay blinked, then leaned far to one side until she collapsed.

"JAY!" Everyone shouted.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Why can't I move?" Jay asked, but her voice sounded like it was far away. "Why won't you let me?"

She was staring at Winry and Alphonse and Shinko, all moving around her, but she couldn't react, couldn't do anything. As she stared, the room around her seemed to wash out, and she was standing in front of an eye. And a bunch of tentacles.

Or at least she thought she was. Her bangs were still in her face.

Her vision began to fade to white, but a dark outline appeared in front of her. All her senses acted like they were 10 meters away, her hearing not precise, her vision clouded, and her skin numb, but there was definitely something in front of her.

"You've moved too much already," the outline laughed. "And I will allow you to move more. The exchange has been fair. But no reaction comes without a price. As you will discover. Move wisely, and live happy. But a wrong move will end your game." The outline spoke in a raspy voice, but it was quickly quieting.

And then the movement came all too quickly.

The white space, the eye, the tentacles, all disappeared, and Jay was in Winry's living room, on the couch. Or at least, she was, until she shot forward and crashed into the wall. All her held back energy suddenly snapped forward, and she was laying on the ground once again.

"Back to the couch," Shinko said disapprovingly.

"What, did you think I did that because it felt good?" Jay asked, rubbing her head as Alphonse passed her an icepack. "Right after I fell, I tried to stand up and walk... But it's like I was frozen, and that movement just came through."

"We didn't get a good pulse on you," Shinko frowned. "There's been enough excitement for a day. You need to calm down."

Jay was about to argue, but she decided to keep her mouth shut. Hallucinating about giant eyes, tentacles, and raspy ghost demons was not a good sign after being transported to another dimension. "Where's Edward?" She asked instead, trying to distract herself from her thoughts.

"I changed his punishment from staring at it to drinking it," Winry sniffed, inspecting a screwdriver. "Honestly, that boy is more trouble than what's worth, sometimes. It's just not fair."

Jay bristled at the word 'fair', before shrugging it off and resting her head on the arm of the couch. 'Fair' was beyond her vocabulary at this point in her life.

"What is it?" Alphonse asked, not missing the change in her expression. Shinko noticed, too, but stayed silent, sizing up her reaction.

"Nothing," Jay said, lying coolly. "Just thinking about home." Well, not a total lie.

"Are you homesick?" Winry asked, patting her shoulder sympathetically.

"No."

The response came too quickly, and Winry raised an eyebrow. "Why not? What's home like for you?"

"Home is a crowded place, with way too much pain and not a whole lot of care. Home is hiding in my bedroom, and signing up for as many school activities as possible just to get away from there."

"What!?" Winry and Alphonse exclaimed together.

"She's being generous about it," Shinko giggled. "I had to teach her how to climb onto the roof so she wouldn't have to stay inside that place."

"That's... that's terrible!" Alphonse cried. "I mean, me and my brother kinda burnt our house to the ground, but our reasoning and logic are for the most part different..."

"I wish I could burn my house to the ground," she growled. "It's a place I'd never want to go back to. I'd be happy staying in this world, for goodness sake!"

Neither Alphonse nor Winry responded.

"Well then," Shinko said, tone softer and more concerned. "I don't see the point of either of us leaving, when you talk about it like that... So would staying here be an option for us?"

"No," a voice said coldly. The door to the living room swung open, with Edward and an empty glass of what was once milk at the threshold.

"Oh no!" Alphonse and Winry scream/whispered. "He's in a bad mood now!"

"Bad idea," he glared, gaze stone cold. "There's a reason people don't cross worlds. Heck, why do you think you've never even heard of this world to begin with?"

Neither Shinko nor Jay responded.

"In the beginning," Ed took the liberty to explain anyways. "Both worlds were alchemy worlds. The only difference was the people. Everybody has a counterpart in each world, with slightly different personalities. I've met Alfons from your world, who turned out to be a 17 year old rocket scientist before he died."

"Alphonse... died?" Shinko cried. Alphonse nodded gravely.

"Then your world took on sciences," Edward continued. "Because you wanted to figure out the reasoning behind alchemy. It worked, but with a huge price: You no longer had the power to use it."

"So, if we stayed here, and forgot about all this science stuff... then would we be able to use alchemy?" Shinko asked innocently, not picking up on the negative attitude in the air.

Edward's eye twitched. "ARE YOU CRAZY!?" He exclaimed. "If you stayed here, our entire world might _lose_ alchemy! You have to leave!"

Winry bowed her head. "I'm sorry guys, but too many lives depend on alchemy. We need to get you back home as soon as possible."

Alphonse stayed suspiciously silent.

"Okay, then," Shinko said softly, patting Jay on the back. "Then, thank you all so much for your generosity and hospitality... but how do we get back?"

Edward sighed. "The most common movement between worlds is through death. The person who transmuted you here is most likely not going to be found, because they've been claimed by Truth." He paused. "Gee, I really hate that guy. Moving on... It is possible to get from world to world without death. But the knowledge isn't found in the library. Or even in the military's records at the capitol. We're going to have to travel up north, to the Fort of Berk." He pulled out a little notepad and flipped through the pages.

"Wow, he's been taking notes in that thing for years," Alphonse muttered. ""I wonder how much space there is? Or how small he writes?"

"For a guy working for the government, he sure has a lot of free time," Winry agreed.

"We'll need to travel by train and see how far that takes us, but our ride stops at the North Province, just beyond the Capitol. From then on, we'll have to travel by foot until we make it to the Fort of Berk, where Al and I use our military ranking, mine as state alchemist, and Al as an official companion, to get us through," Edward explained. "Seem simple?"

Everybody except for Alphonse, stared and shook their heads.

"Fine," Ed sighed. "We'll make things simple. "We'll shop for supplies tonight, then ride the train tomorrow. Got it?"

Everyone nodded enthusiastically but Jay. "Shopping?" she groaned.

"It's always fun, no matter what dimension you're in!" Winry grinned.

"I can't wait!" Shinko grinned, grabbing Jay's arm.

"Shopping," Jay said again, disbelieving as she stood at the corner of the market.

"Uhuh," Winry nodded, confused at her repetition. "Shopping. Why?"

Jay sniffed. "We just got transported from a parallel dimension, and you guys are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars for a couple of days to buy us supplies and what not, that might not even last a week, only to watch us disappear off the map entirely?"

"Uhuh," Winry nodded, not any less confused. "Why?"

"Oh, c'mon, Jay," Shinko frowned. "At least pick out something cute. If we only have so much, why not make the most of it?"

"I don't think it's physically possible for us to make the most of this," Jay said, unrolling the supply list. It tumbled forward and rolled out for a couple of feet onto the ground. "And you said the blonde guy couldn't afford a house?"

"Edward doesn't need one," Winry corrected. "But we need to hurry, because we're losing daylight. Shopping is fun to you guys, right?" Shinko nodded enthusiastically, and Winry grinned in response. "Then we shouldn't have a problem with this."

Shinko paused as Winry dragged Jay along, and turned back to see Edward and Alphonse.

"Brother," Alphonse frowned. "Look at this supply list. Berk Mountains must be freezing, and you want to take your automail to the top?"

Edward shuffled restlessly before sighing. "We can't worry Winry over this. If she had to 'repair my automail all the way to the top'," he quoted rudely. "Then we'd never get them home alive. It's best the way we are, now."

Shinko's eyes widened with shock, but she ran ahead before they could accuse her of eavesdropping, to continue with her impossible reality.

"No, shopping is not fun at all," Jay rasped, dragging herself to rest on a bench.

"Jay-chan," Shinko frowned. "You've got to act more peppy with this. You can't be tired already, because I've seen you run a marathon." Jay stuck her tongue out.

"C'mon, there's gotta be something she's peppy about," Winry said, poking her with a screwdriver.

"Sorry," Shinko laughed dully. "But Jay's a pretty boring person. I don't even think she's boy crazy."

"What?" Winry cried, nearly offended. "I called Edward gorgeous earlier, and she totally agreed with me! She's gotta have a crush on Ed."

"Wait, what?" Shinko and Jay said together.

"No way!" Shinko cried happily. "That's totally cute!"

"I do not!" Jay cried. "She just said Edward was her boyfriend, so who am I to argue if she called him that?" Jay's face was nearly the exact shade of Edward's cloak. He walked past on his way to the next store, and she turned even brighter.

"An exact color match," Winry noted quietly.

"Oh, you're totally in denial," Shinko laughed, shaking Jay. "Blonde hair, copper eyes, rebellious and responsible." She pinched the inside of Jay's elbow, but it tickled instead of hurting. *don't do this, it totally hurts, whether you have a crush or not.*

"Hey!" Jay complained. "Just leave me alone, he's already with Winry!"

"Actually, we were never really together," Winry shrugged.

"Perfect!" Shinko exclaimed. "Now we just have to get Jay and Edward together before we're transported back to our dimension, and most likely never be able to see each other, possibly not remember each other, for the rest of our lives. Seem good?"

Jay scowled, trying another approach. "Well, aren't you demented. Do you even hear how wrong that sounds when you say it out loud? Besides, Edward would never fall for a girl like me. It just 'aint gonna happen."

Shinko and Winry grinned evilly together. "C'mon! You're cute! Aren't all short people cute?"

"I am _not_ cute!" Jay exclaimed. "Never, never!"

"Well, not _now_," Winry admitted. "Your hair is all frizzy."

"I just got transported from another dimension," Jay stuck her lip out.

"And you have a drool mark on your cheek," Winry pointed out.

"You let me walk around with that all day?" Jay angrily accused Shinko, who shrugged innocently as she tried to wipe it off.

"You guys are matching," Winry noted as well. "But Jay's uniform is all crinkled."

"These are our school uniforms," Jay glared again. "We were on our off period. And another reminder, I kinda fell out of the sky, through some door, and transported to another dimension. Of course, it's crinkled."

"Yet mine is completely fine," Shinko observed softly, looking down at herself.

"Oh, are we just gonna stand here and criticize me all day?!" Jay exclaimed, finally losing her edge. She blew off the last of her steam, only to look up to a very enthusiastic Winry and Shinko.

"We're so glad you finally asked," Winry squealed. "Forget shopping, we're gonna go to the spa!"

"Edward wanted to meet up at the edge of the market before lunch," Winry gasped, weighed down with shopping bags. "So we're gonna half to hurry."

"No problem," Shinko grinned, walking slightly faster. "I can actually see! My hair isn't so hard to manage!" Her long brown hair, nearly reaching her ankles, was neatly tied in pigtails with silky purple ribbons. "And I can't wait to wear some of the clothes I bought!" She was clutching an armful of goods, most of which was purple or sparkled in some way.

Jay was walking slowly, although she was carrying the least out of all the girls. "Sorry guys, but these hiking shoes really need to break in. We weren't exactly prepared for long journeys or heavy traveling," she shrugged. Her hair had been intricately braided to the side, but she managed to gather her bangs in her eyes again.

"Your're just jealous because you don't look as cute," Shinko laughed, before sighing. "I don't know. I don't feel cute or anything... Do you think Alphonse will like what I'm wearing?" She whispered to Jay, who turned red at the question.

"Of course!" Winry said, not even trying to hide the fact that she'd been eavesdropping. "Alphonse is just naturally attracted to cute things for some reason!"

"Alphonse!" Edward shouted.

"Huh?" Alphonse blinked and rubbed his eyes. "Wait, what?"

"C'mon," Ed urged. "We're gonna be late! What were you doing over there?"

"I don't know, I think I saw a stray cat playing with a piece of string or something..." Al's voice trailed, and he took a trance like step in the other direction.

"Hmph," Ed complained. "I don't like shopping either, but we at least need to get you one more shirt before we leave. How's this one?" *It's the same one he has on*

"Gee, I don't know," Al shrugged. "Do you think Shinko-chan will like it?"

"Oh, you've moved to calling her 'chan' now?" He grumbled, trying to balance the goods while signing another check.

"How does dessert sound?" Edward asked as soon as everyone had gathered together.

"Great!" Jay said, the food comment changing her perspective on the day.

"She totally has a crush," Winry whispered to Shinko, Jay bristled. "Who wants ice cream?" She asked louder.

"Ooh, me!" Shinko said quickly before Jay could react to Win. Within seconds, Edward managed to pass out the ice cream to everyone as they stood around, before grabbing his own.

Shinko and Win both giggled as Ed's hand brushed Jay's as he passed her the cone. She sulkily took a bite, thoroughly tired of their behavior.

"What's wrong, Jay?" Ed asked, catching on. Win and Shinko exchanged looks again, and Jay practically growled.

"Edward," she started impatiently. "You can turn your arm into a sword, right?" So what kind of fighting do you do?"

"Al and I have been doing martial arts for a few years," he shrugged, suddenly ignoring his sweet tooth.

"Martial arts..." Jay muttered softly to herself. "Fine then," She said, eyes narrowed. "I challenge you to a duel."

"A duel?" he asked, skeptical. "Don't you mean a sparring match?"

"The only difference between fighting is the styles," Jay frowned. "Call it what you want, but I'm gonna pound you."

Edward was taken aback by the sudden change in her personality, but he responded with a frown. "I'd like to see you try, shorty."

"Who are you calling short?" She bristled. "There's no way on this world, or the next, that you're taller than me! It is so on! I am not a freaking weak midget!" She tossed her ice cream cone in the air, and ran forward, braced to fight.

"What? Are you calling me shorter than you?" Edward said in shock. "Don't act like I can't be seen without a microscope! I promise you, this is gonna hurt!"

"How did this start?" Alphonse exclaimed. "We don't need two people with automail!"

"Oh no," Win gasped. "Ed is gonna tear her to pieces!"

"Oh no," Shinko exclaimed at the same time. "Jay is going to rip him apart!"

Both girls stopped and blinked at each other. "We have to see where this is going," they decided after a moment.

The two were soon both quickly involved in an elaborate battle. Ed used quick, precise and practiced movements to maneuver, but Jay's style was fit entirely to her situation. She slowed and sped as needed, catching her ice cream cone and occasionally taking a bite to keep the melting chocolate from spilling.

"Holy..." the remaining three teenagers muttered at once. After what seemed like both forever and no time at all, Edward was lying flat on his back, his automail arm positioned in an unnatural angle.

"I'm wondering if I should draw my blade," He frowned to Jay, who was otherwise happy with her success. "I've never tried to beat someone without alchemy like this before."

"Go ahead, I'm done," she said, letting him out of the hold. "I guess..." she looked at Shinko and Win. "I guess I just felt like I needed to fight. Stress from the day, and all."

"Oh, are you into different physical and psychological relationships?" Winry asked, not understanding the lie at all. Shinko just shook her head.

"Uh..." Jay started. "I thought science wasn't allowed to exist in this world."

"It's not quite the same," Winry agreed. "Maybe you could stop by the library. They've got plenty of books on alchemy."

"What?" Shinko interrupted. "I thought things like that were banned! You know, because of the whole 'not knowing why things work', and all."

"Not 'why'," Edward corrected. "We're not immortals, it's not our jobs to know. We focus on the 'how' of our world. Yeah, I'm sure Little Brother could help you guys find a book or two. We'll be in the train for a while tomorrow." Alphonse looked suddenly awkward again.

"Cool," Jay shrugged, her mind moving 90 miles a minute, her attitude quieted down to it's usual glow.

"Physical and psychological relationships," Jay muttered. "And alchemy. I wonder..." She flipped through the pages of a book she was holding, and walked back and forth between different sections of the library.

"Where did she learn to fight like that?" Alphonse asked Shinko as he helped her carry her books. "Is it part of a career or something?"

"No, she's always been a bit on the aggressive side," Shinko sighed, twirling a piece of hair. "No, actually. In fact, you'd never guess what Jay's career is, based off of what you guys have seen from her. She's one of the strangest high school kids I've ever met."

"Oh," Alphonse said.

"Alchemy is the reconstruction and deconstruction of matter," Jay began reading out loud. "Or an organization of the elements. However, it is not an all powerful science. An object cannot be created from nothing; something of equal value must be given." She snapped the book shut, and peeked across the shelves to where Al and Shinko were waiting. "Will the world combust if I recite a science formula?" she asked.

"Uh..." Al looked uncomfortable.

"You're taking too long, hopefully a no," Jay moved on, flipping through some more pages. "Transmutation circles help circulate the energy being processed through a changing element to the Doors of Truth for a counter action to take place... but why energy?" She muttered out loud.

"Could it be due to the fact that e=mc2?" A voice above her asked.

"Eh!?" Jay slapped her book shut, and found herself staring into the eyes of the hottest 16 year old she had ever seen. He had dark brown eyes, tousled black hair, and a charming smile as he handed her another book.

"I didn't mean to eavesdrop," he said politely. "But I was just on my way through, and I figured this might help."

"Oh... thanks," Jay said awkwardly, not even checking the title or contents. "I guess I need to leave, so-"

She walked towards Alphonse, who jumped like he had been struck by lightning. "Mustang... Is that you!?" he asked the dark haired boy.

"In the flesh," he grinned. "Or so it seems. I'm still having a hard time adjusting. Is your brother around to talk, by chance?"

Al nodded his head mutely. "You can come to Rockbell's with us, if you want," he said weakly.

"Splendid," he nodded, before turning to the girls. "I apologize, I didn't realize you were in Alphonse's company. I would like to introduce myself as Roy Mustang, master of Flame Alchemy, fuhrer, and military official. Or dog. Both terms are used equally."

"I'm Shinko," Shinko shook his hand.

"Jay," Jay nodded, not knowing how to respond to the wink he gave her.

"Well then," he said, his light attitude slowly darkening. "I don't exactly have much time here, so we should be on our way."

"Who the heck-" Edward gaped. "No, never mind. I already know who you are. But _what_ the heck are you?" He was standing at least two heads beneath Roy, looking up with acute disgust and familiarity.

"I don't really have that much time to explain," Roy said wearily, adjusting the shoulder to the blue cloak he wore. "But I'll cut out the basic information: It was an alchemy project gone wrong. There were over 20 failed experiments, but the results have gotten through to the rest of my team."

"You mean Armstrong actually has hair?"

"Shut up. The point is, you need to file a few records about it, and hopefully relate some of the information to your own past experiments. Automail, and all."

A pained expression flashed across Edward's face. "They're not allowed to-"

"I may be your age, but I still rank higher than you, and this is a favor I need done. In fact, I leave tomorrow morning to the Fort of Berk to see if there's any way to undo this process, at all. It looks like a job for the immortals, but if there's any way possible at all, it's bound to be found there."

Alphonse, Win, Shinko, and Jay kept on looking back and forth, following the speaker and tracking the conversation, until Al finally stepped in. "We're heading that way, too."

"Brother!" Ed exclaimed, throwing a fist that Al neatly dodged. "He didn't need to know that!"

"Perfect!" Roy exclaimed. "It looks like I'm heading with you guys. Glad it's been settled, but even I have my bedtime. I'll meet you at the station at 6:15 tomorrow," he said, heading off to the town's inn.

"I really hate that guy sometimes," Edward sighed, walking into the house, Alphonse following him.

"Do you have any clue what's going on?" Shinko asked Winry, watching everyone disperse.

"Not anymore than you guys do," Win sighed. "C'mon, you two. You guys get to sleep in my room tonight."

Win set out pillows and blankets on the floor, making two extra beds against the wall. "Thanks, Win," Jay nodded, before curling up.

"Nope," Shinko whacked her on the head with a pillow. "Things haven't changed for over a decade. Sit up. The sooner you finish, the sooner you go to bed. It doesn't matter if we're in another dimension."

"What are you talking about?" Win asked as Jay blushed.

"We've shared a room for a while," Shinko started, not embarrassed at all. "But every night before we go to bed, I have her sing a lullaby. Technically, singing is a part of her career. Not only do I fall asleep faster, but she helps exercise and relax her voice, despite all that shouting she does, or how silent she gets. It just balances her vocal chords."

"C'mon, don't be shy," Win smiled at Jay. "If it's a whole career thing, I'd like to hear you sing, too."

"Fine," Jay exasperated. Her expression changed, and she took a deep breath. "Eh-eh-oh, eh-o," she started to vocalize, getting a taste of the melody. She sang softly, but the song was already a bitter sweet tale.

"I was left, to my own, devices," she began quietly. "Many days, fell away, with nothing to show. And the walls kept tumbling down, in the city that we lo-o-o-o-ove," She held out the note, gently drawing out the harmony from the melody. "Great clouds roll over the hills, bringing darkness from abo-o-o-o-ove," she paused.

"But if you close your eyes."

The room was silent.

"Does it almost feel like you've been here before?" She carefully clapped her hands along to the beat. "And if you close your eyes, does it almost feel like nothing's changed at all?"

As she continued, her voice remained soft, but it almost sounded weary, as if the lyrics brought despair.

"Oh, where do we begi-i-in," she said as the song ended. "The rubble, or our sins? Oh, where do we begi-I-in, the rubble or our sins?"

Win and Shinko applauded as she finished, and she gave a sort of bow type-thing. "Pompeii, Bastille," Shinko nodded in approval. "I like that song."

"I've never met a singer before," Win sighed. "Ed must be head over heels."

"Why do you keep bringing us up?" Jay frowned. "It doesn't matter, because after we leave, we'll never be able to come back. I was reading some of my alchemy books... and didn't someone give up their soul for us to come? They may have just been playing around with a science they knew they shouldn't have been tampering with... but they're gone now. And we're here."  
>"That's not always the case," Win shrugged. "And the more you get to know somebody, the more complete you are."<p>

"But after they leave?" Jay responded, in pain. "You leave a piece of yourself with them. You can't go back, afterwards."

"Omigosh, you really _are_ in love with Edward! Omigoodness I want to hear every detail bout your first kiss!, " Shinko squealed happily.

"Am _not_!" Jay exclaimed. "I was only talking about friendship! And Alphonse, and Winry! And possibly that Mustang guy, too," She added softly. "But other than that?" she glared. "Dream on, Shinko!" she smacked her with her pillow. "But seriously, I don't think I'd kiss Edward," she grumbled, hugging her pillow.

"You two just love fighting, don't you?" Win giggled. "Now get to bed, we've got a long day tomorrow."

The lights had been out for a while, but sleep would not come to Jay. She curled up and hugged her pillow, but it was too hot and stuffy. She set it beneath her head, but it matted her hair and made her neck all sweaty. No matter what position she chose, she couldn't get comfortable.

"Must be the 'other dimension' business," she grumbled softly out loud. In frustration, she threw her pillow to the ceiling fan, where it bounced around the wood panels a few times before flying down to hit her face. She let the pillow knock her down, and sighed through the cottony material. It was going to be a long night.

Jay ran to the sink as fast as she could, choking, coughing, and spitting into the basin.

"Jay, what's wrong?" Shinko asked, walking to the door groggily.

"I-I-insect," she stuttered, wide awake, rinsing her mouth with water while continuing to cough it up.

"Did you dream you ate an insect?" Win asked, joining the two and rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"No," Jay moaned, clutching her stomach. "I dreamed I _kissed_ one." She began coughing into the sink again.

"Wait a moment," Shinko said suspiciously. "Weren't we talking about Edward before she fell asleep?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Wake up, wake up wake up!" Shinko shouted. "We leave in five minutes!"

"Eh?" Jay groaned, sitting up. "Where am I-" the memories of yesterday flooded her mind, and she collapsed onto her makeshift bed again.

She peeked an eye open, but Shinko was frozen, still looking at her with a disappointed expression. Her limbs became numb, and the room around her faded, seeming to come apart, just as before. But her bangs were still in the same position as they had been earlier, so she had to try to see past them, unable to move them out of the way.

"What is it?" She asked the outline that appeared in front of her, or what she could see of it.

The creature laughed with a raspy wheeze. "Don't act in such a hurry. Time cannot affect you here, at least, not for now. But alchemy used improperly is like a time bomb." Images overwhelmed her mind, like scenes from a war. The sky was red, and there were loud explosions, earthquakes, and sights of mass destruction. She cringed, but her line of sight was replaced with the outline once again.

"There is only one way to get past that. Your dark haired friend has helped you to the extent of his knowledge, but even he doesn't know how to undo his own curse." A shadowy image of Roy appeared, as the shy awkward 16 year old, but he seemed to age within a second, appearing as a proper military official, aged around 30. "Most people think they want to become immortal, to stay forever young. But the course of this man's life, and his entire crew, has changed drastically because of that.

"There are solutions. But you must choose: Time or movement? You have seen the affects of both."

The image of Winry's bedroom began to solidify around her.

"Wait!" Jay cried. "Who are you?"

An evil smile appeared on the creature. "I am what everyone wants to face least. I am Truth. You have passed through my doors, and before you go through again, you will face me."

"Hurry and eat your breakfast, Jay! Get going!" Shinko exclaimed, already carrying her luggage. "We're going to be late!"

"Hm," Jay mused, still half asleep. "He made it sound like there was all the time in the world... If we gave up movement."

"What are you talking about? Not another nightmare, I hope," Shinko rolled her eyes as they hopped down the stairs.

"Meh," Jay responded wearily, nearly falling asleep into her cereal bowl. Visiting the Truth person, whoever he was, apparently took a lot of energy. Seconds later, she was coughing and choking up the milk in her bowl.

"For goodness sakes, Jay!" Shinko exclaimed. "Get a grip! That was extremely undignified, especially for the main character of the awesome-est fan-fiction ever. No falling asleep at the breakfast table!"

"Mm," she groaned in response, brushing cheerios off her forehead, thankful she hadn't gotten any up her nose.

"Okay," Edward raised an eyebrow. "Now I have an excuse not to like milk."

"Is she alright?" Al asked Shinko, slightly concerned.

"Yes," Shinko shrugged. "But definitely not a morning person."

"Neither is Edward," Alphonse laughed. "But I think he was up all night. So he should be fine, for now."

"Up all night?" Shinko exclaimed. "Isn't he busy enough already?"

"We could hear you guys through the walls," Alphonse admitted sheepishly. "I think he liked Jay's singing." Shinko nodded her head. They really were the perfect couple. But if he heard her singing, it meant he heard the rest of her conversation...

The group finally made it to the train station, waving Win goodbye.

"Chill out, blonde!" Edward exclaimed. "It's not like you're never gonna see us again!" She responded with the hard throw of a screwdriver, but he tucked it away in his pocket as soon as she left.

Jay stared silently as the train pulled into the platform.

"You okay?" A voice asked.

"Roy!" Jay exclaimed, turning. "Yeah," she struggled to stay awake. "Just tired."

"You definitely look it," he laughed. "Those dark circles say it all. If you want, you can lean on me in the train," Roy offered.

"That'd be great," Jay nodded, trying to avoid yawning, before turning back to look at Roy. He was wearing his blue cloak again, but the collar of a military uniform with gold trimming shown just above the clasp. It was amazing how someone who had faced so much could act so natural and care-free. *She really has no idea at this point.*

"Is it hard being 16 years old?" She asked as they boarded the train.

Roy looked surprised, but suppressed a grin. "More so than you'd believe, as a matter of fact."

Everybody took their seats. Roy and Jay sat together, so Edward had to sit awkwardly between Shinko and Alphonse. Jay was breathing deeply within seconds, calmly asleep and leaning against Roy, who gently held her hand.

"What is this," Edward muttered darkly as Mustang winked at him.

The ride was silent for the first hour or so, everybody awkwardly watching Jay. She didn't appear to move much, but by the end of the first hour, she was curled up and hugging Roy's arm like a teddy bear.

"So, about this military trip-" Alphonse started, trying to spark a conversation.

"Sorry, classified information," Roy cut him short. "Although younger, I still have a higher rank than you and your brother. Neither of you have passed the security clearance yet."

Al slouched tiredly in his seat.

"We've been doing nothing long enough," Shinko frowned, turning away from the window. "Who's ready for lunch?"

"Me!" All three boys shouted, but Jay was still fast asleep.

"Sorry," Roy shrugged. "But if I move, she might wake up."

Shinko almost started laughing. "When Jay sleeps, she enters a coma-like state. There are very few things that successfully wake her up."

Mustang stood up, but Jay only fell to her side, continuing to breathe deeply.

"There are only two methods I've found that work consistently," Shinko continued. "Slapping her awake, which I did this morning, although I doubt she remembers, or _this_." Shinko grabbed a rectangular item from Jay's pocket, and began tapping the screen.

"Wow," Roy exclaimed. "It surpasses our most advanced technologies, even in the military!" He stared as she flipped through files and documents.

"It's called a cellphone," Shinko raised an eyebrow. "You guys seriously don't have these? It's one of the older models, too."

"Hey, its' the early 1900's," Edward frowned. "But that machine is amazing! How come she didn't show us before?"

"You really have to ask?" Shinko sighed, trying to ignore the boys as they swarmed around the machine. "Ah, here we go," she said at last, clicking on a file. "A method that generally works is playing her music. She usually sings along, especially to her favorite songs."

She put the volume onto the very maximum and inched away as the base guitar began to play.

"You shout it ou-out," it began to play. "But I can't hear a word you say," the rhythm bounced along steadily. "I'm talkin' lou-oud, not sayin' much."

Jay slowly opened her eyes, not bothering to brush her bangs out of the way, before reaching over to pause the music. "I'm bullet proof, nothing to lose, fire away, fire away," she continued on her own. "Ricochet, you take your aim, fire away, fire away." She took a deep breath and sang even more clearly. "You shoot me down, but I won't fall, I am titanium," her voice rang out. "You shoot me down, but I won't fall, I am titanium." the car was silent as she finished.

"Wow," Alphonse marveled. "I doubt angels could sing like that." She gave him a funny look at the compliment, but tucked her cellphone away and stood up.

"I'm still tired," Jay sighed, leaning against the wall. "I didn't get nearly enough sleep. Shame on you all for waking me up." She gave them the death stare, holding her cellphone like a weapon.

"Twelve hours didn't suffice?" Ed raised an eyebrow.

"She normally runs off of 18," Shinko sighed, putting her hands on her hips. "C'mon. We should all get something to eat."

Jay frowned. "I don't _want_ something to eat," but she followed them into the dining car and even took a few bites of the bowl of rice Shinko slid in front of her. After that, she just stared out the window with a pained expression.

"What's into her?" Edward poked her with a fork, but she didn't react.

"She's really in a bad mood," Shinko sighed. "If she goes too long without a sufficient amount of sleep, she can enter a coma-like state while awake, and tune everything out. Most kids just sit in the back of class, waiting for the end of the period, but she can go on for hours and not notice a thing."

Roy surpressed a smile. "Your guy's world is so strange," he said.

Shinko shook her head. "You guys have only heard the beginning things," she laughed. "Believe it or not, there's actually a reason Jay does what she does."

The car fell silent.

"What?" Shinko asked.

"You aren't gonna explain?" The three said in unison. *Best time to talk about your friend. When you know she can't hear you.*

Shinko grinned. "Yeah. I was just waiting for you to ask. Sometimes it's hard to know when to begin, but for the sake of a story... it starts 10 years back in London, England, with a walk in the park.

"Jay Megumi Fujioka seemed to be a happy girl. She was the youngest in a family of 8, with 6 older brothers. Her mother was from a high-standing British family, and her father was a wealthy Japanese businessman that kept their house running. He was never really home, though. I don't think anyone knows where he is now.

"Jay's mom, Arietty, took great pride in Jay. Her mother and all 5 of her brothers would often gather at social events just to talk about her, painting her in the most golden light possible. She was adored by all who heard of her, and charmed all who saw her. Until one fateful day, on her 6th birthday.

"Arietty was walking her children through the park, something not usually done in that household. Nobody knew why, but after that, it didn't matter. While Jay was there, she saw a man singing for coin to the side of the road. Without a second thought, she tossed him a copper euro.

"Jay didn't think she had done anything of importance, but her family all looked at her coldly when she returned. When they said they didn't approve of her giving away money, she pointed out the man was half dead and starving. Out of spite, she ran back over to him, shaking out the rest, maybe 20 or 30 euros from her pocket. It was such a small action, nobody should have thought much of it..." Shinko looked up.

"That one small action lead further and further. Before long, she had been dishonored, disrespected, and disowned by her family. She went back, though, and found the man who sung at the streets. After a few months, she began to sing with him. And she has since, always doing what she's determined correct."

"Really?!" All three of them shouted.

"No," Shinko stuck her tongue out. "Jay just likes to sing. And she greatly dislikes her family. There's not much more to it than that."

"What?" Roy exclaimed.

"There's got to be something," Al shrugged.

"Well, there's actually a lot," Shinko started. "But Jay's going to wake up soon." She held up three fingers and counted down. On the last second, Jay sneezed and shook her head.

"What just happened?" she asked. Ed, Al, and Roy laughed, Shinko proud that it had actually worked.

"No, seriously!" Jay insisted. "What did I miss? Did I black out?"

"Maybe you should get to bed," Shinko advised, sipping a teacup.

"Fine then," Jay frowned. She stood up stiffly, limbs asleep already.

"Don't trip," Shinko advised, not looking back.

"Why don't you jinx it!" Jay said, already tumbling forward. "Or help me out. Either works." Shinko laughed and helped Jay up, leaving the three boys to sit at the table alone.

"You called _them_ weird?" Roy patted Edward's head, standing up. "I have a feeling this train ride is going to be a lot longer than any of us are hoping for."

"Why don't you just say it, Colonel-"

Roy slapped a hand down on Edwards mouth, grinning widely. "Nope. I'm tired of you calling me that. We're the same age, you have to treat me with equal respect."

"Your hands taste burnt," Edward spat. "And since when did I respect you to begin with? It's not exactly like your rank does anything for you."

"That's my point," Roy said. His tone was light, but his eyes were burning. "Things have changed, okay? However little or big, you're still a part of it. It's inevitable."

"Does it hurt?" Edward asked after a moment, finally realized what Mustang had said, but not spoken.

"Like heck-" Ed slapped a hard metal hand down on Roy's mouth, cutting off his sentence.

"Nope!" Edward grinned widely. "If I can't swear, you can't, either! I hope that hurt, pretty boy!"

"Your hands taste like machine grease," Roy exclaimed. "What did you do, knock a tooth out!? And since when is 'heck' a swear word?" He glared, quickly slipping on a white glove with a red circle drawn on the back.

"How do you know what machine grease tastes like, anyways?" Ed growled, clapping his hands, electricity glowing in front of them.

"Whoa," Alphonse stepped between them, suddenly appearing taller than both. "No swearing, either of you, no eating machine grease, and no knocking teeth out. We need to be able to get to Berk alive."

Both boys turned on him, with murderous looks in their eyes.

He quickly stepped out of their conversation, and tried to summarize the best way to prepare an alcahistory circle. "What was that about a long trip?" he asked, sighing.

After a few more hours of boredom, everyone finally gave up and set off to bed, early. However, the day didn't want to be over yet.

Everyone was suffering the affects of Truth, at one point or another. Alphonse had already been transmuted as a soul within an empty suit of armor. Shinko and Jay had been transmuted from a parallel universe. Roy had his own special situation, and now only appeared 15-16 years old.

But Edward was special. He'd had problems with Truth and with alchemy for as long as he could remember, and the problems weren't going to leave, any time soon. He fell asleep quickly, metal arm against his forehead, but his escape from the day meant the trouble was just beginning.

"Hello," Truth rasped, grinning.

"Not you," Edward growled, already transmuting his blade, but it was just a dream. A nightmare, in fact. He fell from the white space, downwards, but he didn't land. It was like he was already standing there to begin with. Standing... in his home.

But that was impossible. He'd burnt his house to the ground years ago, for that very reason...

"Edward!" A voice called. It was a familiar voice. It was a voice he had ached to hear for years and years, with an ache so bad he had given his left leg in order to do so.

He cringed, but couldn't help but turn. Her warm eyes greeted him kindly, and she was smiling. She had never, not once, seemed to stop smiling.

Edward wanted nothing more than to run towards her. Hug her. Have her let him know that everything was going to be alright. But he couldn't seem to do so. He'd had this dream so many times in a row, he knew what was coming next.

"Edward," the voice said sadly. "You don't want to give your mother a hug...?" Her voice weakened as she spoke, before she disappeared entirely. In her place was a monster, oozing, bleeding, falling apart. He had lost his mother, Alphonse, pieces of himself, everything that mattered, to that monster.

His house disappeared and he opened his eyes. The ceiling of the train blurred into focus in front of him, and he took a deep breath, with his teeth clenched.

"I miss her, Alphonse," he said, knowing his brother was fast asleep. "I miss our mother."

He sat up and sighed. He didn't want to be near Alphonse after that dream, especially while Al was in human form. It felt like he was going to lose him all over again.

Jay had been fast asleep for a while, but her dreams had been intruded, as well.

"Hello," Truth rasped, grinning.

"Not you," she growled, crossing her arms.

"My, my," he said blatantly. "You certainly take after our young alchemist. Would you like to see how he's doing? It seems you've been rather oblivious to his side of the story, in fact."

"Roy?" she said, confused.

Truth's grin widened. "You've passed through _my_ doors, and you will have to see what _I_ show you." The space around her faded to a dimly lit home, where she saw both Edward and Alphonse, younger, standing together.

"What are they doing?" she mused, looking around. They seemed so excited and happy, but nervous, too. Like they had prepared all semester for a huge test.

They clapped their hands and placed them on the ground... and Jay screamed.

There was so much blood, and a monster. It breathed, it's heart pounding, before collapsing and dying.

"This is the price of alchemy," Truth spoke to Jay as the scene continued. "They, using their own two hands, tried to recreate something beyond their power." The monster, mouth bleeding, disappeared as Ed clapped his hands again. His left leg was gone, and Alphonse had disappeared entirely. "They tried to recreate life, a force beyond science, a force beyond magic... and they paid for it fairly." The suit of armor blinked, it's eyes alive with soulfire, before Ed's arm disappeared, as well.

"Stop it," Jay said, sweating bullets. "Stop it!" she begged.

Truth stared. "Weak girl, you do not yet understand. Can you even begin to imagine the pain they went through?" Jay gasped. It felt like her knee down, and from her shoulder across, was being cremated.

"It burns..." her eyes began to water, and she fell to her knees. The only thing that kept her sane was knowing it was a dream. She could almost fell her pillow behind her head.

"And that was only the state alchemist's tribute to his cause," Truth continued. "Can you imagine what it would be like to have your soul connected to a source other than your body?"

There was another flash, and all she saw was metal. The metal ached, though. Jay remembered one moment from her childhood, where one of her five older brothers clapped her head, hard enough to rupture her eardrum. She was deaf for days, which was hard as a singer, but the pain grew and grew as time wore on. Before long, she snuck to the medicine cabinets during the night, taking tiny sips of the bitter pain-killer liquid. She even swore to Shinko a few times it felt like her brain was bleeding.

But now it was like that all over her body. Her limbs were stiff and numb at the sore time. She realized, this was what it was like to be metal.

But this feeling was not meant for humans. Not meant for living souls.

"Why are you showing me this?" She gasped, shaking, unable to see past her illusion.

"These two are risking their lives to take you home, but are you sure that's where you are headed?" Truth flashed his demonic grin, and Jay woke, screaming into her pillow.

Before she could even think, she was running through the cars, slamming open doors, and suddenly standing in front of a very surprised looking Edward.

"Omigosh, I'm so sorry!" She tackled him with a hug, tears streaming down her face and into his precious red cloak.

His jaw fell open, and he dropped the book he was holding. "Uh... What are you doing awake?"

"That rotten..." she didn't say her insult out loud. "Truth showed me everything. Well, not even close, but he showed me more than I wanted to see..." The tears began to fill her eyes again, but she quickly brushed them away. "Now that it comes to it... What are _you_ doing awake?"  
>"Uh... Couldn't sleep," Ed said quickly, kicking the copy of <em>100 Things you Never Knew About Alchemy<em> away from where he had dropped it. "What... What exactly did you see?"

Jay took a deep breath. "I saw two little boys, and an impossible dream. I saw a lot of hard work, but I also saw... a monster... and a lot of pain..." Tears began to brim again. "Gosh darn it, stop making me cry, Edward," she exclaimed, taking deep breaths once again.

Edward's expression softened. "Yeah, it would have been a lot better if none of that had ever happened... But I'm glad it ended the way it did. I'm glad I've learned my lesson."  
>Jay stared in horror at what he had said.<p>

"Not like that," he stated quickly, sighing. "But I could have ended up with nothing. I'm still alive, and my brother is still human..." He patted Jay's shoulder sympathetically. "There's no such thing as a painless lesson," he started. "I'm living proof of that, for goodness' sake. They just don't exist, and we have to learn that sacrifices are necessary. You have to give something up in order to gain something. But whatever you gain will be worth it. If you can endure that pain, and walk away from it, you'll find you have a heart strong enough to overcome any obstacle." He looked down at his hand on her shoulder. "A Fullmetal heart."

Jay smiled, then blinked, then looked down at his hand, then up at him. "Hey, since when are you taller than me, shrimp?"

"Since forever, half-pint midget," he smiled triumphantly. "Oh, and since you're so much closer to the ground to me, would you mind picking up my book?"

Jay didn't hesitate to do so, but she hit him over the head with it as he tried to grab it from her. The two quickly began fighting.

Meanwhile, Shinko, Alphonse, and Roy were all watching from the doorway. "I heard Jay scream for the first time," Shinko stared, in awe.

"Wow, I didn't think Ed was the type to pour out his soul like that," Roy yawned.

"Hurry, back to bed!" Alphonse ordered. "They haven't spotted us yet!"

"Hey, no alchemy!" Jay shouted at Ed as he transmuted his blade, still carrying his book.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4:**

****A/N: Hi, guys! Sorry for my extremely disorganized writing. School is back in session *glares at math textbook*, so I figured it would be best if I could finish this story asap. Ha. ****

****And I've also noticed a lot of writers inserting conversations with their characters, which I thought was a neat idea...****

*****looks up at Edward* *stares*****

****Ed: Well, get writing!****

****Me: Well, aren't you fun. Forget that.****

****Please enjoy, and leave reviews... Hehe, lots, and lots of reviews, please... So here goes! This chapter is basically just a collection of mini adventures. And I only put the last one in because my bff was begging me to. If you think it's cool, that's great, but I still laugh when I look back at it... More A/N later!****

****The team stepped on to the train, collapsing onto the floor as it began moving again.

"I'm so sore," Shinko groaned. "I've never had to run so fast before..."

"I'm so tired," Jay yawned. "I was expecting more sleep.

"I'm so annoyed," Edward growled, mocking the two's conversation. "You know, jumping up to save people's lives can get really irritating after so long-"

"Look, wise guy," Jay glared. "If you hadn't-"

"I'm so disappointed," Roy pouted, continuing the previous conversation. "I was expecting quite a few more flame alchemy opportunities."

"I'm so hungry," Alphonse moaned. "Has anybody eaten anything all day?"

Everyone else nodded.

"Shoot," he muttered. "Be right back." He left to find some food.

"But geez," Ed sighed. "I can't believe some of the things we've done today.

Memory One- Honorary Alchemist

Jay flipped through the library books, struggling to follow Shinko's orders and stay awake for the majority of the ride. "Energy equals matter times the speed of light squared," She grumbled out loud, twirling a strand of hair. Flipping to the next book, she carefully opened it to a book-marked page. "Alchemy is the construction and deconstruction of matter..."  
>There was still a missing variable. Energy. Jay then flipped open to the book Roy had handed her when they had first been introduced... A book on acupuncture. Had it been some sort of mistake? A military alchemist, a man of science, getting tangled in what he should have considered pure folly...<p>

Jay shrugged and opened the book. All the more reason to humiliate him when he found out. Shame himself for not paying attention.

She read the introduction, eyes widening, before skipping to a chapter towards the back, and turning back to the alchemy books.

"When a person from behind the gate dies, their soul is used to generate the energy connection between the re and deconstructed matter," She read out loud from the alchemy book. So, a soul was energy.

But energy and matter were interchangeable, right?

She then turned back to her acupuncture book, nearly sweating with anxiety. "Acupuncture is all about the flow of an energy, around the one source it's existence is tied to." Goodness, she'd have to kiss Roy if this worked out in the end.

...

"Just stay still," Jay advised, standing in front of Shinko. "It should be painless, and hopefully, your heart will still be beating when I'm done. I don't know for certain, because I've never tried acupuncture before."

"Why do I feel like this is going to end badly?" Shinko sighed, barely concerned, peeking into the books Jay had laid open on the floor.

"Because in reality, it's Mustang's fault," she replied smoothly, skimming through the information one last time. "Although I doubt he even realizes. Okay, give me your wrist. It says there's a nerve here-"

Shinko yelped as Jay pinched her vein. "What, exactly are you trying to accomplish again?" she said through her teeth,

Jay was hesitant to respond. "You're going to become an alchemist," she decided after a moment.

"And how do you figure that?" she managed to grin painfully, ignoring the stinging in her other wrist.

"In this world, anybody can become an alchemist," she started. "But we're not from this world. All the souls here are connected, by their energy, to the doors of truth, right? So if we can figure out a way to tie your energy to Truth's realm, you can become an alchemist, too."

"And your mad scientist nature is revealed," Shinko sighed, hardly believing even her most trusted friend was capable of such a feat.

"I've never done so much worthy of being called 'mad'," Jay said, slightly offended, skimming through her books again.

"Right," Shinko said icily. "You just take things too far. Like that hole in the closet door. Or that scorch mark on the garage floor."

"Which was partly your doing," Jay took a deep breath. "Alright: Are you ready?"

Shinko couldn't feel either of her arms from the shoulder down, and her ankle was suddenly bothering her... but there was a first time for everything. "Alright, give it a go, Jay-chan," she encouraged her.

Jay pinched one last nerve at Shinko's collarbone before stepping back.

...

"Alphonse! Edward! Roy, somebody-" Jay slammed open the door to the compartment.

"What is it?" Edward asked, setting down a book.

"Shinko-chan is unconscious, and I think she might have died!" Jay exclaimed. Everyone quickly ran through the compartments, to find Shinko lying on the floor. All of the books had been hastily kicked away from the area.

"She doesn't have a good pulse," Al worried, holding her wrist. "What happened?"

"Well..." Jay started, thankful the majority of the attention was focused on Shinko.

Finally, she coughed twice, before batting open her eyelashes. "Alphonse?" Shinko asked weakly.

"Yes?" He said, very concerned. "Are you breathing okay? Do you feel light-headed? Is the room too hot, too cold-"

"Alphonse," Shinko repeated. "Are you holding my hand?"

"Uhh..." he turned an even brighter shade than Edward's cloak.

Everyone quickly calmed down and headed back to where they had been, but Roy glanced down and saw the title of one of the books on the floor. Smiling to himself, he walked back to the compartment and went back to organizing all the paperwork he'd have to file in his head.

Memory Two- Just Keep Swimming

"Wow, the ocean is so pretty," Shinko sighed, looking out the window.

"Yeah, it's nice," Alphonse agreed, no longer afraid of water- especially with his precious blood seal gone.

"Whatever, it's not like we're stopping there," Edward frowned, turning a page in his book. "We've got to get to Berk as soon as possible."

Roy grinned evilly. "C'mon, Fullmetal, everyone loves the ocean!"  
>"Says the Flame Alchemist?" Ed asked, raising an eyebrow, suspicions raised.<p>

"Well, I may not like it, but Jay does. In fact, she currently seems to be riding from the roof of the train to get a better view."

"WHAT!?" Everyone else shouted.

Ed clapped his hands and placed them on the floor. Arcs of electricity snaked across the ground, up the walls, and onto the ceiling, where a hole was formed, and Jay fell through.

"Ow," she exclaimed, landing flat on her back.

"What the heck were you thinking!" Shinko and Edward shook her violently back and forth.

"You could have fallen off and died!" Shinko gasped dramatically. "Then we'd never make it home!"

"Like I want to go there," Jay muttered under her breath.

"Fine!" Edward threw his hands in the air. "We can go to the ocean. It's not like you should be desperate enough to kill yourself to get the chance! I've seen enough deaths as it is. We'll be there in 20 minutes."

"What's so dangerous about riding on the roof?" Jay asked innocently.

"And she's not tall enough to climb up there on her own," Alphonse mused aloud, while Mustang looked innocently into the distance.

...20 minutes laytah...

"So. The ocean." Edward stood his distance from the tide, wondering how long it would take to work the sand out of his automail. "Now what?"

"Can we get wet?" Shinko asked, itching to splash in the waves.

"Sure," Ed said carefully. "But no swimming suits or anything. It's not proper for a young lady to show so much skin. Roll up your jeans and sleeves if it bothers you, and take off your shoes."

"I think it should be noted that Winry wears crop tops and miniskirts on a daily basis," Roy shrugged, rolling up his jeans.

"Who ever said anything about Winry being proper?" Alphonse asked, unlacing his shoes.

"Let's have a splash fight," Jay exclaimed, being the first one to run into the waves. Shinko and Alphonse jumped into the icy water as well, screaming and laughing as they ran around, leaving Roy and Ed to wait on the sandy shore.

"Well?" Ed asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, that's right, your automail," Roy remembered. "And... I don't think I really want to get wet... you know, flame alchemy and all..."

"WUSS!" Edward laughed, kicking him hard into the tide. "Just because I can't get wet, doesn't mean I can't have fun!"

"Fullmetal-" Roy cursed before he toppled into the water. He sat up, sighing, and gave Ed the death stare before moving on to join everyone else.

Roy first splashed Jay, who sent only a slightly larger wave at Alphonse, who returned the favor to Shinko. However, when Shinko splashed, a full tidal wave surged forward from behind her, following her motions. Everyone was soaked head-to-toe before it receded.

"WAVE ALCHEMY!?" Ed, Roy, and Al cried together, while Jay grinned to herself.

Memory 3- Last One Standing

"Almost to Berk," Edward said happily, tracking off their progress on a map before turning back to his book.

"Edward," Alphonse knocked on the door. "Uh... There's a bit of a problem..."

Ed stared at him flatly and tossed his book behind him. "Are all the passengers conscious? Are all the passengers onboard?"

"Well, not _quite_ like that," Al said carefully, trying to decide how to phrase his situation.

Ed crossed his arms. "Well, if it's not a problem worth looking at, it's not _my_ problem."

"Brother," Alphonse begged.

"Fine," Ed glared, standing up. They crossed over compartments, until opening to the one with the most space. Shinko was calmly sitting by the window, enjoying a cup of tea, while Roy and Jay were involved in an entirely different situation.

Jay ran forward, kicking hard, while Mustang easily anticipated her attack and moved appropriately to dodge it. "You need to put more transition into your attacks," he instructed. "This is martial arts, not street fighting. Be secure about your movement."

Jay took a deep breath and charged forward again, this time alternating between kicks and punches, struggling to keep her movements fluid. "It's hard," she exclaimed after so long, breathing hard.

"Why are you sparring my military colonel?" Edward asked dumbly, slightly offended.

"What is it to you, wise-guy?" She asked coldly, staring him down.

"Nothing," he said, thankful she had refrained from calling him shorty. She was already in a bad mood, and he didn't want to have to fight her. His automail was starting to hurt, which meant alchemy was reserved for emergencies, and although she wasn't a martial arts expert, Jay could easily pound him street fighting. "I just wanted to make a formal announcement: We're making one final stop before Berk, so get ready or whatever."

...

The group was walking through the streets, pushing past the crowd on their way back to the platform. "Why are there so many people here?" Jay exclaimed. "Do they enjoy the freezing climate?"

"Living conditions are easier, since this place isn't in war like the rest of our countries," Alphonse responded. "Just try to stick together."

"Where's Shinko?" Roy asked after a moment as the team gathered.

Jay looked suddenly concerned. "She couldn't have gone too far..."

"Help!" came a cry from the distance.

Edward turned. "She's this way..."

Everyone followed him through the streets, twisting and turning, until the crowd was all but gone. They were at the end of a dark alley way.

"Edward-" Shinko cried, but her voice was cut off. Everyone quickly turned around to face Shinko, but she wasn't alone. In fact, she was _barely_. Her arms were held above her in rusted chains, and she was tied in several ropes.

The person holding the chains grinned evilly, a mask hiding the rest of his features. "Well, well. Little brats evidently lie only half the time. The Fullmetal Alchemist himself _is_ in your company."

"Leave me alone," Shinko gasped, struggling away from her chains.

"Why not we shut you up?" The masked figure snapped his fingers, and another figure stepped from the shadows and pressed a cloth to Shinko's mouth, the chemicals knocking her out. "Here's the deal," the mask guy growled. "Fullmetal is the most experienced, youngest and most-able alchemist. We would like you to join us."

Fullmetal blinked.

"Yes, or no!" The leader shouted. "My gang is devised of the most talented alchemists, outside of the military. We don't want to be a part of that group, and follow their corrupted will."  
>Mustang frowned, slipping on a glove. A white glove with a red transmutation circle on the back. "The military has fought hard to keep this country from corruption, and it's not something you can just quit. Give us the girl, and leave us alone."<p>

"Give us Fullmetal in her exchange," the mask glared.

Roy snapped his fingers, and the world seemed to implode.

A snake of fire laced around his hand, before expanding, and racing towards the leader. Almost that instant, another dark figure melted out from the shadows... and intercepted the flame. He was an alchemist, as well.

Edward stomped his foot on the ground, and giant spikes of stone rose up to spear them, but they dissolved into dust with the help from the other alchemists, pouring out from the shadows.

"Your skill is exemplary," The mask nodded at Edward. "But you are no match, facing all of my alchemists. Join, and become even stronger."

"Heck no," he said, glancing at Roy. "If I can't fight you with alchemy, then we'll all fight, with whatever it takes." He placed his hands on the ground and stood up with a stone spear, tossing it to Jay, before transmuting his own.

He nodded, and Roy, Al, and Jay all ran forward, ready to fight, even with the unholy circumstances.

It turns out, a lot more alchemists could hide in the shadows than appeared, but there was a benefit: They all needed transmutation circles, and Fullmetal did not. Once he disabled their hands, encased in stone or painfully twisted behind them, they were done for. Within a matter of chaos-filled minutes, it was just the masked leader once again, holding a yet unconscious Shinko.

"Let her go," Jay begged. "She's all I have left. We may not be related, but she's my sister. We belong together, and you can't take her away!" Tears and blood and sweat all covered Jay's features, but nothing hid the desperation in her eyes.

The leader new he was outnumbered, but nothing would turn down his pride. Instead, he held Shinko up, and a knife at her throat. "I hear Fullmetal believes that every soul has worth. Prove that this soul means something, and I will take your soul as payment for hers."  
>"Souls don't belong to anybody!" Edward cried, emotions spilling. "Not to demons, not to sins... Not to us." His last words left a hollow ring in the air as he looked down at his metal arm. Thinking quick, he signaled to Alphonse, begging for an alcahistory circle. Souls could not be brought back to life, but some could be kept from dying.<p>

"You say that all souls are worth something," Ed glared. "So, may I ask, why was this soul rendered completely useless into our hands?" He grabbed Jay's arm, and she stared forward, motionless, already anticipating. "If this soul was worth so much," he continued, even louder, waiting for Al's approval. "Then why do I care so little as it's about to leave?" He transmuted his blade, and held it at Jay's throat.

The mask's eyes widened with fear. "You wouldn't..." his own blade clattered to the ground by Shinko's feet.

"Nope," Edward agreed. "I wouldn't dare, because I did." He took his blade away, coated freshly with blood, and Jay fell limply to the ground.

"This death is not on my hands!" The gang leader disappeared, dropping Shinko. Roy caught her and melted away the chains, while Alphonse and Edward worked with Jay.

"Quick, quick, quick!" Edward panicked. "Hurry up with the chalk!"

"I'm just sealing a wound," Alphonse exclaimed. "It doesn't have to be fancy, but if there's a flaw in the circle, things will go wrong! A person can only last 10 seconds missing a vein like that!"

Roy stepped back to observe their work. Was it just him, or could he see Jay's soul reaching for the body? They were still connected, like the soul's hand was grasping the arm, trying to stay...

Mustang shook his head. He was an alchemist. He didn't have time for that nonsense.

7...

6...

5...

Alphonse clapped his hands, and there was a flash of blue light.

...

Jay blinked and opened her eyes, the pain in her neck numbed. She sat up and blinked, facing the white, never-ending realm of truth.

"Ugh, I hate this place," She flopped back down and moaned.

"Well, you won't have to stay here much longer," the raspy voice assured her, the grin reappearing. "This is the realm between life and death, and you're about to move on. Another failed transmutation, it appears. So who would you like to join in as? I'm not saying you won't go back to your friends. But you won't exactly be yourself, now will you?"

"What are you talking about?" Jay edged away, not exactly sure she wanted to know. Her switch between worlds was Truth's fault. Her boring train ride was Truth's fault. And her half-dead, bleeding body was also Truth's fault. It was clear nothing good was going to come from this.

"Oh, everybody has a little bit of everything in them," Truth rasped. "But which are you _more_ of? I see a lot of... Pride... in your condition," he grinned.

Suddenly she was falling forward, somehow different. She looked like herself, but her eyes were a vibrant violet hue, and she was dressed in a military uniform, like Roy's, only fitted to her size.

"Or Envy?" Truth continued. "After all, Shinko still appears to have things so much better off than you, wouldn't you agree?" She was tumbling again, this time sitting up in a crop-top, short-skirt, and a matching head-band.

"You could just warn me about the out-fit change," She growled, but she couldn't seem to stop spinning. Or maybe she wasn't spinning. There was too much white, and nothing but white.

"Oh, you should be grateful," Truth chuckled. "I'm keeping you from the Doors of Death, but is that really where you want to go?" A giant black door appeared, filled with the tentacles and eyes, reaching for her... but it was so much more real than before. Colder, darker. This wasn't some dream she could wake up from. If she went there, there was no going back.

"No," a voice said. "That is not where she belongs. And you will not tamper any of the sort with her life. You are a gate-keeper, not a fate-chooser. Her friends have saved her, leave her in peace."

Truth hissed, and seemed to disappear. He was still there, of course, but he wouldn't reveal himself.

Jay turned to the voice, and suddenly, the world was something more than a white or a black. There was gold. There was a lion.

The creature, about the size of a car- no, truck, dipped it's head in approval. "I realize this world confuses you... but I can't guarantee you'll leave it. Follow, and you'll rule it."

Alphonse, but not Alphonse, was standing beside the lion, and offered his hand. Offered a way back.

"Who am I following?" Jay asked quickly. "Who are you?"

Alphonse was leading her away, and the realm began to fade, but nothing could block the intensity of the lion's eyes. "I am Truth."

...

There was a flash of blue light, and Jay coughed, awake, before screaming.

"No, nonononono!" Edward cried. "Something went wrong! Oh, no, she's not healed all the way, oh nonono..."

"Ahh!" Alphonse ran around the chalk circle. "It was flawless, how is she not healed?! Just a simple gash, omigosh, what do we do-"

"If it's a failed transmutation, we have to kill it, right!?" Ed cried, past hysteria.

"AHHH!" Jay continued to scream. "IT"S COLD!" She was still wearing the shortskirt and croptop. Roy was the first to act, offering her his military jacket and wrapping it around her shoulders.

"Shinko," Jay coughed, still shivering. "Can you bring her over here?"

Ed and Al stared wordlessly, watching as Roy scooped her up and set her down by Jay. Jay leaned over and pinched her wrist, next to her collarbone, and right beneath her ribcage. Within seconds, she batted her eyelashes and slowly rose to consciousness.

And then Shinko was screaming, as well. "JAY!" She cried. "What have you done with your hair!? It looks like you put on a palm tree!" After a moment of quickly smoothing it out, everyone was ready to head back to the platform.

"Well, that was an eventful day," Alphonse said tiredly.

"I don't care if you guys have been feeling crammed or tired, we have not been spending enough time on that train," Edward glared.

"Don't deny it, you look cute in a miniskirt," Roy whispered loudly to Jay. She wasn't the only one glowing red after that remark.

"On that note..." Shinko said skeptically.

****A/N: Hi, guys! I know that was a weird note to end that chapter on. Or a weird note, in general. But I have an explanation. ****

****As cool as it would be, Jay was not based off of me. Both Jay and my pen name were collected from my best guy friend, Jason. However, Jason has been being very rude, and promises not to read my work unless I include him in my story as a main character. I kind of did... and created a gender-bent version of him. I doubt he's noticed. Of course, I incorporate a lot of my attributes into Jay as well... But I wonder what it would be like if my friends actually encountered those characters.****

****Shinko is thrilled with my work, and loves the fact that she's about to be shipped with Alphonse, but apologies, folks. AlMei is adorable, but this story includes concepts after the Original, so she does not come into play. Sorry.****

****Al: But all-powerful-story-universe-master-author, why!?****

****Me *about to cry*: I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Uh... *still close to tears*... want a cookie?****

****Internet cookies for all those who have stayed with me so far. Please review!****


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

****Hello, again, amazing peoples! I'm sorry for not explaining everything that runs in my head. I only realize what I miss when I skim my work later. So: A brief recollection: I used a lion similar, but not a crossover, with Narnia, because I don't want to offend any religions or anything. And both Jason and I are very musical people, and I quote a lot of songs, but am I going to get fined for this!? I do not own Pompeii or Titanium! In case for some odd reason you thought I did. And Jay is not Envy, but it's who she would have become, have she 'died'.****

*****Looks up from laptop to face Roy*****

****Me: Wow, this is really going to become a habit, isn't it? ****

****Roy: ...****

****I have such a hard time writing from other's perspectives, so I hoped making Roy 16 would help me relate to him better... Not! Idk. And I totally ship Royai. She does appear later in the story... Sort of. Maybe. Writing has always been a challenge, which is why I'm so determined to do good... so pleez don't judge!****

****Wait. No. I need your judgements. But pleez don't make them hurt. Just simply leave a review after the chapter! Internet cookies for all! Except for Shinko, who encouraged I write this ridiculous chapter. This inspiration totally did not come from a couple of girls watching TV way too late on a sleepover. I would also like to add: Sorry guys, no more music. They updated the rules and guidelines, so now my characters can't sing songs from other artists :'(****

****Jason, I hope you cried when you read this.****

****Wait... you haven't been reading at all, have you? -_-****

"A delay." Edward blinked, and the conductor nodded. "A delay!"

"Calm down, brother," Alphonse said cautiously. "At least it's only a day, out of what could have been a week."

"Did I not explain myself before?" Edward said, his eyes dark and glowering. "The longer the foreigners stay, the more unbalanced the doors of Truth become, and the closer everything gets to falling apart! An extra day might as well be a week, with all the damage that's been happening!"

Jay unfortunately found herself agreeing. Different dimension or not, most people did not find themselves facing sin-loving demons every time they passed out. "Alphonse," she asked, not noticing that he had once again gone suspiciously silent. "Did you see Truth yesterday?"

"No," he said, still keeping an eye on the furious Ed. "I don't think I've ever seen Truth."

"Or the lion?"

Both Ed and Al were staring. "What are you talking about?" they asked.

So that's why the figure that had lead her away from the doors of Death didn't seem like Alphonse. They looked the same, but it must have just been the fact that _he_ was the one who put together the transmutation circle that saved her. But as for the lion...

"So... What goes on, today?" Roy asked, back in his military jacket. "Just a day in the North Province, with nothing to do?"

"There's always time to go shopping!" Shinko grinned broadly, and held Jay's collar as she tried to dash the opposite direction.

"Well, if we're staying longer, we might have to double check on supplies," Edward mused. Jay, Al, and Roy all stared in horror at the thought that those two were actually agreeing on something.

"Nobody likes shopping," Jay blew a raspberry at Shinko.

"Oh, come on," Shinko frowned, brushing through her pigtails, which had somehow managed to stay completely neat and tangle-free for the entire ride, despite the length. "We can get you something cute! Like the miniskirt yesterday? I had no idea what happened to your hair, but other than that, maybe you should try to wear outfits like that more often."  
>"In weather like this?!" Jay exclaimed in disgust, the vapor from her breath becoming visible in the cold.<p>

"On second thought, shopping might not be so bad, after all," Roy, said, beginning to walk. Jay moaned, but after a few minutes, they were all gathered outside at the market.

"Great, let's go," Jay said as soon as they had arrived, but Shinko grabbed her collar again.

"Do you want to go to the bookstore?" Shinko asked.

Jay turned. Her Lolita friend making such a bizarre request. "What for?"

"Maybe something on acupuncture," she suggested. "It's come in handy so far." Jay shrugged, but she was being dragged to the other end of the market, anyways.

"C'mon, Al, let's find some supplies," Edward huffed. Roy was all but abandoned as everyone else continued their missions.

...

"There. We should have enough to last," Edward sighed, carrying a stack of groceries, and munching on a piece of bread. "Where's everyone else?" He asked Al.

"Brother, we're not going to have enough to last if you eat all of it," he frowned.

...

"Havoc!?" Roy exclaimed, to the other boy in a matching blue and gold jacket. "What are you doing here?"

The tired junior turned to face his loyal friend and general. "Hey, Colonel- Er, general Flame. Glad to see you here." He turned back to the street, watching as the people bustled by. "Armstrong suggested I come down and check up on you. Luck has it, not having to travel to the top of Berk to see you. Good luck to you, by the way. I hear they have a special section roped off, just for the stacks of confidential paperwork."

Mustang glared.

"Hey, you have it better off," Havoc frowned. "They won't sell me cigarettes. They say I'm underage, funny as it is. Since when did they start putting an age limit on things like that?"

Mustang shook his head. Addictions could be hard to counter, but no one new how he really felt about all that paper work. Hour by hour, signing sheet by sheet... Things were supposed to have improved when he got promoted, but all that had happened was he got 'special' paperwork now, classified papers not allowed to leave their sorry excuse for a home. Which meant he had to go to them.

"Why not in the Capitol," he muttered quietly, shaking his head, before deciding to regroup with Ed and Al.

...

"Ed! Al! Roy!" Jay shouted, out of breath from her sprinting. "I can't find Shinko, anywhere!"

"Alright," Roy sighed, snapping his fingers and igniting a small flame. "Be on the lookout for alchemy-mafia-gangs, because things apparently hate ending easy for us."

"She disappeared somewhere in the bookstore," Jay frowned, leading them towards the shop. It was surprisingly crowded, but the majority of the people in it were simply trying to shelter from the cold.

"Why are there so many people!" Ed frowned. "Wouldn't they at least be sensible and take their hoods off so we can see their faces?"

"They don't know we're looking for anyone," Alphonse protested in their sake, before whipping around. "Shinko!?" he gaped.

Everyone turned and mirrored his expression to perfection. Shinko was standing in the crowd of people, but... her precious pigtails were only chin length.

"Shinko!" Jay cried. "Where were you? What have you done with your hair?"

"Don't disappear on us like that," Edward begged. "We all have a day left, and then Jay can waste her life trying to keep track of people!"  
>Jay smacked him upside the head. He quickly began hitting back, and Alphonse was somehow trying to separate the two.<p>

"Shinko, we need to get going, I'm sure you'll be able to find plenty of books later-" Roy started.

Shinko stared.

"Are you alright?" Roy asked.

Shinko blinked. "I'm not Shinko," she said cautiously. "I think you might have me mistaken for someone else."

"What, no way!" Jay said, dodging a blow from Ed's metal arm. "You're wearing the same cloak and everything! I doubt anyone else takes the time out of their day to match their hair ribbons to their eyes-"

Roy looked offended, so Jay coughed and continued. "We can't play any more games, and we need to head home-"

"Hi, guys!" Shinko bounded up. The regular Shinko, with record-breaking long pigtails. "I found this great manga called Conquerors of Shamballa, and it's very interesting, I think, considering everything we've done..." her voice trailed as she looked up to face the mirror image of herself.

"Wait, what?" Shinko and Shinko said together. "Wow, you're exactly like- well, almost exactly like me!" They said together.

The short-haired Shinko laughed. "I'm sorry for the mix-up, guys. My name is Shoko. And I thought I recognized _you_," she pointed to Jay. "But Jee would never mix up my name. Although, I'm assuming you guys look fairly like each other..." she mused.

"_Jee_ ?" Jay asked.

"Oh, here she comes," Shoko said with mock enthusiasm. There was a blur of orange and red, and soon a little girl was shaking Shoko back and forth with distress.

"Mistress, how could you!? You're not allowed to run off all unannounced like that!" the girl finally stopped moving enough so everyone could make out her features. She looked almost exactly like Jay, but she was wearing a red cape with alchemy symbols, and her eyes were bright gold.

"Watch the hair, please," Shoko gasped.

"Of course, mistress. Apologies, mistress," Jee bowed. She turned to face the rest of the team. "And who might you have in your company, today, mistress?"

"What a rare occurrence," Shoko thought out loud, her voice highly amused. "So the other world does exist, after all. And it seems we've met ourselves, from it. Our counterparts."

Jee rolled her eyes, but shook her head and put on her faithful servant charade. "How delightful. Would you and your group like to visit with the mistress, sometime, perhaps?" Out of habit, she spoke to Shinko, but occasionally glanced back at Jay.

"Nope," Edward stepped up to speak for them. "They're leaving, gone from this world, tomorrow, and most likely never to return." Alphonse shifted.

"Well, then, you'll have to come over tonight," Shoko smiled.

"Of course!" Shinko smiled.

"Why not?" Jay shrugged.

"Sounds fun!" Roy grinned.

Alphonse naturally gravitated towards the majority of the group, and Edward was out-vetoed again.

...

Jay seemed in a relatively happy mood, until Mustang began walking next to her. "Don't think you've avoided being cute," he said, raising an eyebrow. Jay tried to duck away, but he grabbed her arm and conjured up a jacket out of nowhere. "For use at Berk Mountains," he explained. "You may take it as a parting gift, as well. Havoc- I mean, one of my friends and his girlfriend helped me pick it out."

Jay looked at the jacket, then blushed with embarrassment. "No, no way!"

"It's reversible," he assured her. She turned it inside out, but responded with a similar reaction. "Okay, fine, you don't like it," he sighed. "But keep it with you, anyways." Little did she happen to know that she had no choice but to keep it with her. It had been Havoc's idea to demolish all her other cloaks and jackets, had she refused.

The group finally made it to the Takegami estate, where Shoko smiled at the edge of the courtyard. "Welcome to our abode," she smiled.

"Just 'abode'?" Shinko asked.

"In case you couldn't tell, this place is far from humble," Jee lowered her head, frowning.

Roy whispered something quietly to Shoko, and her eyes widened, but she shrugged it off and nodded. "I'm so glad you could all join us," Shoko smiled, but she was only talking to Alphonse. "I mean, days behind gates can get a little boring," she batted her eyelashes at Al.

"Of course they can," he nodded politely. Shinko looked disapprovingly at Shoko, but Roy nodded his head. Shoko grabbed Shinko's and Alphonse's hands and lead them inside, but she didn't let go of Al's hand.

"Uh, hello," Shinko frowned. Roy grinned slightly as Shoko turned. "Don't you think you're being just a little bit forward?"

"Oh, does it bother you for some reason?" Shoko asked, clasping Al's hand daintily and winking. "Because you can _obviously_ tell he's okay with it."

"Uh..." Al started, not entirely sure what to say. Except for him most certainly _not_ being okay with it.

"What?!" Shinko exclaimed. "I thought counterparts were supposed to be similar, but you apparently haven't learned to read expressions!"

"No need to," Shoko shrugged. "You're just jealous, aren't you? Because I'm the better counterpart out of the two of us."

"Oh, it looks like it's on!" Roy exclaimed, grinning widely. "So who's it going to be? Who's going to end up with Alphonse? Shoko or Shinko? We can hardly call the fight fair, but who has the better advantage?"

"I do, of course," Shoko flipped a pigtail over her shoulder. "I doubt you could actually handle the stress of a fight, anyways. Correct me if I'm wrong, but Jay is usually there to defend you, is she not? How much do you owe her for every scar she has?"

"I had no idea I was such a rotten person," Shinko seethed. "But I must be, if you are me. Although on my behalf, Jay has owned those scars on her one, and each one she gets leaves a deeper scar on my heart. As for Alphonse, he's been risking his alchemy and time, the very things that matter in his life, to get me back to my own. Give me a weapon, and I will fight, for Jay, for Al, for everything."

"The challenge is on," Shoko grinned evilly, before sending a glance to Roy. Jee passed both Shoko and Shinko a scythe, but Jay acted as referee and had her own weapon in case things got out of hand.

"General Mustang..." Alphonse gaped. "What have you started...?!"

"It depends on what they're capable of," Roy said, watching the battle, but he was focused more on Shinko. He turned his head towards the girls, talking to Al. "You can have an instant alchahistory circle, right?"

Alphonse settled for backhanding the general out of the way before continuing on to watch the fight.

Shoko started with quick, graceful movements, but from the beginning of the battle, it was clear there was no competition between the two. The fighting progressed, and Shoko moved faster and faster, trying to estimate how much longer Shinko would be able to manage.

"Who fights with scythes, anyways?" Edward yawned, dodging a blow from Jay.

"I'd like to introduce you to the grim reaper, AKA, sudden death," she frowned, not taking her eyes off the scene.

"You're falling behind," Shoko said, with no expression. With a quick, effortless movement, she threw her blade in an arc so fast it would have beheaded Shinko had she not ducked. However, her hair flew up behind her as a result of the movement... and soon Shoko and Shinko were mirror images of each other. Shink's pigtails were chin length, the rest of her hair lying on the ground beside her.

Shoko's eyes narrowed.

Shinko's eyes widened.

Roy grinned, watching, amused, as the pieces of the puzzle fell into place.

"My... hair..." Shinko gaped, staring at the locks in front of her. In the flash of a second, she lunged forward, braced with her weapon again. The adrenaline rushed into her blood so fast, she couldn't even recall half of what she was doing.

Jay relaxed. "I've been trying to activate her 'death ninja' side for years, and this is what it's finally come to. She'll hold out."

"What makes you think Shoko will, too?" Alphonse asked, worriedly, his voice not any less concerned than it had been moments before.

"Their skill..." Roy frowned over his observations. "Is equal."

The blades crossed, and soon, the weapons were eliminated. It was down to girl vs girl.

"Don't tell me I can't win," Shoko said quietly. "Because you can't either."

Shinko was silent for a moment. "70%," she decided at last.

"Wait, what?"

"The human body is 70% water. I've been through the doors of Truth, so I don't need a transmutation circle. I can control water. I can control _you_."

Roy nodded his head in approval, as if to say, _finally!_ Before watching Shoko crumple to the ground and helping her up.

Shinko, although not physically wounded, sank to the ground as well, overcome with shock. "My...hair..." she repeated. Jay face-palmed, but Ed actually did something beneficial for once.

He practically dragged Shinko over to the place where her hair had been cut, but after a flash of blue alchemic light, it was as if nothing had happened. "My... hair?" she repeated, dumbfounded, before looking up at Edward.

"They'd be so cute together!" Roy and Shoko smiled.

"But Shinko is taller than Edward," Jay stuck her lip out. "Awkward, much?"

"Riza was taller than me for most of the time I knew her," Roy shrugged.

"On that note," Jee spoke for the first time in a while. "How's Auntie doing?"

Jay's lip quivered. "I don't have an aunt, why do you?"

"Counterparts aren't entirely alike," Jee shrugged. "Aunt Riza's barely around to teach me flame alchemy, so don't take it too hard-"

Roy spun her around to face him. "You know flame alchemy?" he asked coldly.

"You can't hog all the glory of a hidden art," she frowned. She pulled on a set of dark leather- or what appeared to be leather- biking gloves, with red transmutation circles. She held her palms together, her hands facing opposite from each other, then twisted them to face the same way while drawing them apart. A glowing ball of fire appeared in the center.

Jay sunk into a further state of depression. "You're an alchemist, too? You're so much better than I am, like a hero, almost. I'm just a boredom-fueled rule breaker."

"That's not true, Jay," Jee placed a hand on her shoulder, her palm still warm. "Counterparts may not be exactly alike, but none of us have more potential than another. You're just as capable in your world as I am in this one."

"Thanks, Jee," Jay smiled, pulling her into a hug.

"And you said _I_ was a narcissist?" Roy shook his head, but smiled.

Jay took a deep breath. "I really don't want to go home..." she started. "But I'm needed there." Jee and Roy applauded.

"You can't forget, though, according to Fullmetal, that all alchemy, science, and belief is at risk with your existence on this side of the doors," Roy shrugged.

"How can Riza stand you?" Jee frowned in disgust.

"She likes my spark," Roy said, brushing invisible dust off of his precious alchemy gloves.

****A/N: Hello, once again, everybody! Which internet cookie do you prefer? Peanut-butter, or chocolate chi- Wait... Where are the cookies?****

****Shinko: *cough*, Say what?****

****Me: Are you kidding me!? Those were especially for the readers! And how did you finish them all on your own?****

****Fullmetal: *cough*****

****Me:...****

****Fullmetal: Hey, it's only fair! You said I did something beneficial FOR ONCE. Let's not forget I'm a main protagonist? ****

****Me: Let's see how your role changes in the next few chapters :c Oh, excuse me sir, where are my manners? Did you want MILK with that cookie?****

****Al: *puppydawg face* Please be nice to Nii-San, all-powerful-master-of-the-made-up-fma-universe-author.****

****Me: WHAT IS THIS!?****

****Shinko: Don't worry, at least you did SOME things right. Like those two events, that randomly change the shipments? Al saving Jay's life, and Ed restoring my hair?****

****Me: What is it to you?! There is no shipping! I simply added those events because you requested, I do not write romance novels!****

****Al: But Mei...****

****Me: *facepalm*... I can have the next batch of internet cookies done by the next time I post... For the meantime, please review :)****


	6. Chapter 6

****A/N: Hi, guys! I don't think writing is supposed to be stressful, but I've wasted over two weeks of my life on this, and I'm so desperate to be done... In my original, handwritten version, Shoko was princess of the world or something, and knew Riza from the military alliances the kingdom had formed. ****

****Wow, I was definitely not awake when I wrote that.****

****I've cut out so much of my story, especially since that, but my goal here was to make things a little less confusing... Hehe, just wait till the A/N at the end of this chapter, it's gonna ruin everyone's lives...****

****Ed: What!? No! My life is too good for you to ruin!****

****Me: You should have said something BEFORE I began using you as a main protagonist, shorty.****

****Ed: HAHAHA WHO ARE YOU CALLING A HALF-PINT MIDGET THAT CAN'T BE SEEN WITHOUT A MICROSCOPE, HUH? ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE FACT THAT YOU'RE SHORTER THAN ME!****

****Al: Keep in mind, brother, she could be anywhere between 5 foot and 5'7. She never says when in the story it takes place.****

****Ed: *gloom* ****

****Me: Well, you might have been a LITTLE taller if you had had a glass of milk with all those cookies... What, weren't there 50 or 60?****

****Ed: Why so many? You don't even get that many reviews!****

****Me: Oh, shaddup! Maybe I'd get more if the readers had figured out your SECRET yet, hmm?****

****Ed:...****

****Me: Das what I thought.****

****...****

****So, please keep reading, and please keep reviewing :) I really want to know what everyone thinks of my writing!****

For the first time, Jay woke up without some odd vision of Truth threatening to haunt her life. Maybe it was because of the good Truth, the lion that had kept her alive, but it freaked her out, too. Like the calm before the storm.

"Today's the day," Edward said. "In about 3 hours... we're never gonna see each other again."

"That desperate to get rid of us?" Jay said. Her tone was light, but her eyes were sad. Ed didn't reply.

"It's for the best," Alphonse decided to try and console her. "But we're never going to forget you two." Roy nodded silently in agreement.

"It's getting even colder," Jay shivered, trying to gather warmth in her laced-up long sleeved tee shirt.

"Why not you put on a proper coat?" Roy recommended. Of course, he'd always be able to lend her an extra military jacket if she had thrown away her gift. Over-sized things looked cute on small people.

"I looked everywhere for another one," she started. "But all I had was this..." She took a bundle from her pack. "I wanted to throw it away, but if it really was a parting gift, I couldn't..." She unfolded it and turned to the side to slip it on. "Please don't laugh, guys," she begged, before facing them again.

The hood flipped on, with a cat face and ribbons ties along the ears, complete with a striped tail at the bottom edge, also adorned with ribbon.

"You're ADORABLE!" Everyone exclaimed together. The colors were all whites, grays, and blacks, so the soft pink ribbon made an excellent compliment to the color set. Her jeans were dark gray and her boots were black, which added to the affect even more so.

"Meh, at least I'm warm," she decided. "I might cut off the tail and make a set of gloves, though."

Roy reached into the pocket and pulled out a set of mittens, styled so that the top could be buttoned back and compact into finger less gloves. "You thought of everything, didn't you," she sighed. He nodded proudly.

"Havoc's girlfriend helped, a lot! The two of us wouldn't have made it halfway down the market without her help."

"Why do you have your heart so set on this?" Jay frowned, but she began walking up the gradually steepening incline. Everyone else pulled on an extra fur-lined coat and followed.

...

"There's no way we can handle this all through the day!" Shinko shouted above the roaring wind.

"Link arms," Alphonse instructed everyone. Edward cringed as he did so, but he took a deep breath and continued walking.

"This isn't gonna work," Shinko shouted again. "But I have another idea! Stay still, and hold on, everyone!" She knelt down and placed her hands on the ground, a glowing white transmutation circle spreading across the snowy surface and beneath and around the team. The snow underneath them solidified to an icy platform.

"Ice and snow are direct variations of water," Roy explained. "So she should be able to manipulate them easily."

With everyone gathered onto the platform, Shinko directed her thoughts upward, and the sheet of ice began soaring across the snow. They were going fast enough, Jay had to yawn a few times to pop her ears and regulate the pressure. It scared her how awake she was, and how unsleepy she had been through the last 24 hours...

"Oh, did you really want to come here that badly?" A voice said angrily. It was Truth- the ghost-demon kind, but for once, he wasn't smiling. He wasn't just an outline, anymore, either. Instead of a shadow distinguishing his features, it was scorch marks. His entire form was covered in black burns, still searing red at the edges.

Jay had barely noticed the change in place; the realm was white, Berk was white; the only difference was the temperature.

"Some day, I'll make sure you never return," he hissed. "You've ruined my place, plenty enough already. Soon, in less than three hours, you'll trespass my realm for only one last time, and things will finally go back to the way they're supposed to be, after you pay the price."

"I thought the price was paid," Jay said fearlessly, her impatience growing. "And I'm not trespassing, I've been granted movement, remember? It's because of the lion, isn't it? You've woven your place with lies, but the actual Truth can only come when called upon. You've been doing everything to make sure he never appears... When in reality, it's you who doesn't belong here. You're nothing but lies."

The burn marks seemed to catch fire, the embers of the white spreading outward, the ash crumbling to the ground, but Jay didn't have time to watch, because she had her own life problems to deal with.

When she woke up, there was a blast of heat, the feeling of broken shards... glass? Or maybe the ice transmutation circle? And a metal wall. Yup. A whole lot of metal.

Shinko, who was awake, had managed to lose track of the whole situation entirely. The ice circle had been getting more and more full of transmutation marks, until finally, it shattered, and everyone flew forward.

That was supposed to be okay. There was about 5 feet of fresh powder, waiting to greet them. But with all the thick mist, they were barely able to see more than 5 feet in front of them... And there happened to be a building there.

"Look out!" Roy cried, being the first to hit the wall. Shinko tumbled after him, and Al flew forwards as well, but Ed had enough time to stare wide-eyed, clap his hands at last minute, and transmute a door which he burst through into the building. Jay, who had just woken up from her unpleasant vision, smacked straight into the wall, only to pass out again. At least she didn't see Truth... only stars. Lots, and lots of stars.

"Are you alright!" Alphonse yelped as Jay slumped into the snow.

"Where did that building come from?" Shinko moaned, checking to make sure her hair was alright.

"It's always been here," Roy frowned, rubbing his head. "And it's where we've been going. Welcome," he said. "To the Fort of Berk."  
>Jay slid into the building, her skin stinging due to the change of temperature. "One, two, three," she muttered sulkily, counting the flashes in her vision. She shook it off and stood up, but managed to get along fine. "Where did Edward go?" She asked after a moment.<p>

"Not- a pleasant- landing," he winced, only visible as a red fur bundle on the floor. He scooted forward after everyone was safely inside, and fixed the hole he had put in the wall.

"Really, Fullmetal?" A disapproving voice said. "Right next to the door, too."

"Lieutenant Armstrong," Edward smiled weakly. The entire group turned to face a tall blonde woman, with dazzling blue eyes, a similar uniform to Roy's, and a look as sharp and cruel as the blade she carried.

"Well, up you guys, go," she instructed. "And you tracked a lot of snow in here, as well. We've already got enough, so try your best to clean up."

"Sir, yes sir!" Jay stood up straight, and began shaking out her boots and coat. Armstrong smiled, pleased.

Alphonse stared questioningly.

"She's a lot like my mom," Jay explained, taking off the cat hoodie. "She looks a lot like her, too. I wonder if she's her counterpart...?" Deep down, she was thinking that the uniformed lady was a lot nicer than her mom. There was no way they could be the same. And now she was going back...

Everybody followed after her example, except for Edward, who was still having trouble with his shoes. "Are you alright?" Shinko asked.

"Just having... some trouble with my automail..." Edward cringed, trying to hide the pain in his eyes. Alphonse was the first to react, and carefully took the layers of cloaks off of his brother, until he was back in his regular black tanktop. But he was not regular, at all.

At the joints where the automail connected with the skin, his veins turned blue and purple. "We have to un-connect your arm, brother," Alphonse said hurriedly. "It's ruining your nerves!"

"The nerves are already shot in my arm," he responded. "I can't feel a thing in my automail."

"Good thing, too, because normally, this would hurt you," Alphonse quickly separated Ed's arm and lied it on the ground, while Roy took special care to heat it to it's proper temperature without damaging it. Al took off Ed's leg, as well, and went to examining the skin around the wounds.

"Why didn't you tell us you were going to die of frostbite!?" Shinko exclaimed.

"Because I'm not going to die," Edward frowned. "I already have. It's really not that bad, once you get past the pain-"

Shinko whacked him upside the head with a layer of purple jackets. "Well, then, try to avoid dying, because we need you alive. And if pain isn't so bad, why do you look like you're going to kill _me_ for doing that?"

"It's hard!," he complained loudly. "Trying to manage without an arm or a leg! Or both! I try not to accept sympathy, but anything would be better from you two-," he glared hard at both Jay and Shinko hard. Then his expression softened. "But as soon as I get my automail back on, we can head down to the under-ground quarters, where the files should be located..." he thought out loud. "And then we won't see anymore of you two."

"Well then," Mustang cleared his throat. "We should probably get going..."

_Going where?_ Jay asked in her head. _Because really, there's nothing more than after this..._ But she couldn't say it out loud. She had to go back, with Shinko. She had to go back _for_ Shinko. They had seemed to work a lot out of Jay, but nobody knew her friend's truth quite yet...

The word Truth clicked in her mind, and she saw the lion and the demon again. The demon had said he would pass through _his_ doors one last time on the way home, but was that really where she wanted to go?

The lion had said she wouldn't go home, period. Truth couldn't be two things at once, so what was happening? Where were the lies?

"Yeah..." Jay agreed, well after they had started walking. "Let's..." her precious singer's voice cracked on that word. "Let's get going."

...

"This is the biggest library I've ever seen!" Edward smiled happily, staggering among the rows of books.

"Your automail-" Alphonse exclaimed.

"I'll but it back on in a minute, little brother. For now, it's best to get the nerves and blood flowing again." Lies. He just wanted to enjoy his time without the pain. He wandered around the shelves of books slowly, just enjoying the scent of the paper, the wear of the spines, and everything there was to enjoy about a good, heartfelt book.

"I guess this is where I leave," Roy said sadly. "They've got a ton of files for me to sort through..." He desperately missed his stubborn lieutenant Hawkeye by his side through this mess.

"Goodbye, Roy," Jay smiled, not hesitating to hug him. He smiled in response, and flipped up the hood to her jacket so she was CatJay again. "I would say I'd keep in touch," she sniffed, keeping her head down and not letting him see her tears. "But I'm never going to get to see you again, am I?"

He lifted her head anyways, and met her expression with one that could only be consoled by 30 years of pain, love, trials, and success. "Stay close to the fire, okay?" he smiled.

"Good bye, Roy," Shinko said as well, but he patted her head. "It seems Fullmetal has failed to recognize, you can't go back."

"What!?" She asked, breath caught in her throat, hoping, and not hoping, she had misinterpreted what he had just said.

"You're an alchemist now," he said. "Whether or not you started in this world or not doesn't mean anything, because this is where you belong." Jay wanted to cry even more. Shinko had finally found where she belonged, and she had always thought, always been, side by side... but things were changing now. She couldn't afford to succumb to her fear.

"Well..." Jay ground her teeth, not letting her outward emotions show. "I still need to leave. If such is the case... I've worked to keep you out of danger, Shinko. I'm not going to stay and put you at even more risk."

Leaving her friend no time to respond, she grabbed a piece of chalk, and sought out the book with the information to take her home... and away from her friends. Within a few minutes, her hands and the floor were covered in the white powder, but her heart was covered in ash.

"I'll help you with your automail the instant Jay goes through the portal," Alphonse instructed Ed. "For now, view her work." Ed sighed, but crawled around the transmutation circle.

"G-Good bye, Al," Jay bit her tongue. How long could she go without crying? 2 minutes? 20 seconds? She held out her hand for Al to shake, but he pulled her into a hug instead.

"I'll miss you," he said. Then he whispered, low enough for only her to hear. "You can stay, if you want."

Her eyes widened. "What are you talking about!?"

"You said you had nothing to go back to," he continued softly. "Well, you can come back to us here."

"That'd be fatal for everyone."

He shook his head. "You used your science-acupuncture method to tie Shinko's energy to us. Look at her now, an advanced alchemist and barely any knowledge of it. We could do the same for you."

"But Jee is already an alchemist. I wouldn't be able to be one if she was. Isn't that how counterparts work?"

"You don't have to be an alchemist to be a part of Truth- a part of our Truth. Truth is nothing and everything, right?"

"I don't know, Al," Jay said, overwhelmed. Her shock had helped her overcome the urge to cry.

"If you want to, I'll open the portal back up in 24 hours. If not, send a note or something- anything."

"Okay..." she looked for something, anything else, to summon what she wanted to say... For once in her life, the words never came. "Thank you," she finished, but it was a voice of shock. Not her voice.

He nodded, smiling, patted the CatJay, and passed her to Edward.

"Well... It's been so long," he rubbed the back of his neck with his one arm. "But it takes goodbyes to say new hellos, right?"

"Oh, just shaddup and say you'll miss me," she crossed her arms.

"Only if you do the same," he said fairly.

She reached up and hugged him. "Yeah, I'll miss you. I may not ever be able to see any of you again," she looked meaningfully at Al. "But I'll never forget any of you." Jay stepped inside the portal. "To London," she smiled bravely, but there was no expression convincing enough to hide how shattered she was.

"Now," Al commanded Edward, as he connected his arm. The moment the nerves activated, he clapped his hands. The last thing Jay saw was a blue alchemic energy, surrounding the portal, surrounding her... before she went again to the realm of Truth.

"How many more times will I have to pass through here?" Jay asked the scorched outline, red embers still glowing around his form.

"This is the realm of Truth," it rasped, voice expressionless. "I am all... as well, as you. Infinite, do you suppose?"

With her friends gone, and nothing to return to, Jay felt weak and helpless... Just like he wanted her to feel. She couldn't let it overcome her. Ignoring the demon, she walked forward to the door that appeared in front of her, but she couldn't see through it. The surface was covered in the field of energy.

"Will this take me home?" She asked.

"Do you want to go to London, England?" he responded. Jay sighed. With her luck, the portal would open right in front of a car. At least she'd be prepared for it, though.

"Then farewell," she stepped through.

Up until now, the demon had been fairly expressionless, pride crushed by the lion's encounter. The moment she stepped through the door, though, his features spread into a wide, cunning, scorched smile.

"Wait!" Jay cried, sensing the trouble up ahead, but she was already falling. There was only one thing that could help her now... and that thing would only arrive in 24 hours.

...

Jay sat up, looking down from the top of the hill. London was right beneath her as promised, with the clock tower she had visited so often and knew so well, but there was definitely a huge difference.

All the buildings were made of brick and stone. The sky was red and smoggy and cloudy, filled with rustic chemicals and the scent of blood. What had appeared as a calm sight was only the center of a city of turmoil; zeppelins circled around in the sky, over her city, with explosions and mines going off beneath them. "It's an air raid," she said, disbelieving.

She whipped around, to find she wasn't the only one on the hill. "Edward!" she cried, tears instinctively flowing. Before she could think about what was happening, she tackled him with a hug.

"Hey- who the heck are you?!" he exclaimed, but his voice was numbed with shock. She turned to see where he was staring. An old-fashioned car was slowly driving away along the rural road.

"You- you don't know me?" Jay asked, hurt. He took a few steps back, before blinking with realization.

"Oh, you must have known _this_ Edward." She herself hadn't been paying attention. His hair was shorter and paler, _he_ was shorter, and his eyes were a light blue.

"No," she said cautiously. "I never knew his counterpart... I knew _you_. Edward- you're both you _and_ your counterpart... What have you done!?"

"It's not my fault," he exclaimed coldly. "But it's going to be over soon. It has to. Al is still there... And Win, and Roy, and Rose..."

Jay sat down hard on the hill, looking down on the town. "Edward, you've met me," she decided. "The Edward from the alchemy world. But you've met me much later in your life... I'm in the wrong time period."

****A/N: If you've done your FMA research and watched the original, you all know what's coming next! I listened to music as I've been typing, and my story is flowing so much better... As for Ed's secret-****

****Ed: Whoa there, author! My turn!****

****Me: No. As I was saying-****

****Ed: In the handwritten version, there was no result to Jay and Shinko staying in the alchemy world. The price had been paid, and that was that. Apparently, I lied and came up with all the worlds tearing apart, but when you look at the non-existant knowledge, it would have just been better for me to be correct, as I always am, and mess with the energy spectrum of the scale to find a way for them both to stay. So there! Da stupid author wrote me no secret whatsoever!-****

****Me: Well, well then *glares daggers*... Why not we fix this story up and ship Shinko and Edward!?****

****Shinko: Wait, you're telling me that wasn't the original plan?****

****Me: Well... *coughcough* If you look at it, FMAB viewers, we have two Edwards now. I assure you all, the world will not fall apart if I ship ******both****** Shedkoward and EdWin.****

****Ed: Shedkoward!? What kinda name is that!?****

****A fun one. Say it over and over again... Actually, 'Shalphinko' was way more amusing. Shinko is not as easy a name to combine with others as Jay. So, if they continue to get stolen... *glares at cast*, sorry, I cannot hand out internet cookies, but I would still love reviews! Lots, and lots of reviews, please!****


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

****A/N: I'm sorry I talk so much. Type. You know what I mean. But I'm finally getting somewhere in the story, so I won't stay too long...****

****Clear up: I've only been writing from mainly Jay's view, but earlier in the story, before Berk, Ed comments on how his automail was starting to hurt. Because all the internal energies around him were connected to Truth, and Jay's was not, it sort of created a rift, which messed with the energy connecting through his automail... I think, I've never really studied acupuncture...? Wait, where did that idea come from to begin with!?****

****This is a fic on the original, so I don't know what the Fort of Berk looks like, and I kinda made it up... But everyone seems to like the Brotherhood better, so I'll include pieces of it, too, but this is not a crossover. Possibly more A/N later. So for now, read on!****

Jay sat down hard on the hill, looking down on the town. "Edward, you've met me," she decided. "The Edward from the alchemy world. But you've met me much later in your life... I'm in the wrong time period."

"That's impossible-" he started, but it just seemed to dawn on him how _he_ had been transferred through different worlds, different times, and different wars.

"We can't stay here," she said, looking at the turmoil beneath the city. "And I don't know if we can last 24 hours... Can you still do alchemy? I'm pretty sure I remember what the portal looks like..."

Ed shifted. "I can still do alchemy, but only because I'm still connected to the other Truth- the alchemy Truth. I don't know how long different connections last. But your energy..." he looked like he had a headache. "You're not the same as me, but you don't belong here or there. But that doesn't matter now, it _can't _matter now..." he stared off into the distance, as the car continued driving, barely in view. "Does anything still matter?"

Getting no reaction from him, Jay faced the city again, watching the explosions. There was a group of people who had managed to evacuate, mourning as their city was destroyed. Oh well. It would be rebuilt later.

But Jay didn't have a city to go back to, anymore. Not only was she confused as she had been before, but now she was lost, to add to it. "Well," she sighed, not facing Ed, knowing he wasn't paying attention. "At least one- well, two of us," she said, referring to both him and his counterpart. "Is getting home after this." That much still mattered.

"Person, look out!" Ed cried suddenly. The engine had gone out, so the machine fell so silently, Jay would've been crushed if Ed hadn't spoke up. She was on her feet within an instant, a zeppelin falling from the sky, threatening to destroy the hill she stood on.

"Edward!" Jay cried. There were loud crashes, the sound of metal on metal and tearing machine parts, as the giant thudded to the ground. The machine was already in flames, but the moment it touched the grass, it ignited like it had been doused in gasoline. "Edward-" She tried, but the metal frame was crashing between them. "Where are you-"

"Person!" he called sharply, from behind the clutter.

"My name is Jay," she said, finally irritated, but she managed to dodge the falling pieces. "We need to get out of this mess, come on-"

"I can't."

"Are you stuck?" She asked, barely able to make out his face. The ash covered everything, and the flames of the fire were growing closer.

"No," he said, "but I can't. It's going to take me dying in this world to get my soul back to the other one. That's the only way it can work."

"What!" Jay cried, tumbling as more of the debris fell. "No, it can't"

"I don't want it to be that way, but-" the main frame of the zeppelin melted, and collapsed over where he was standing.

"No!" Jay screamed, ignoring the fire, ignoring the shards of metal that pierced her skin, and ran towards him. Working as quickly as she could, she unearthed him, and took a deep breath. There was only one chance of this working, one chance of him living, and she was determined not to let it go to waste.

At this point, at his younger age, he was smaller than her, so lifting him out of the mess and piggybacking him to a safe distance was actually possible.

Once he was lying on the clearing, away from the fire, she took less than a second to check his pulse. Still alive, but barely. Grabbing a sharp piece of the metal that had fallen, no bigger than the length of her palm, she shrugged off her jacket and cut it to strips of cloth, tying off his wounds and pressure points as fast as she could, ignoring the fact that each grey or white strip was quickly colored red. If he didn't die of infection, it was going to be of blood loss.

As soon as he was secure enough, she carried him again, and helped him walk to the bottom of the hill.

"How are you still moving?" she marveled sadly.

"Who are you?" he asked weakly.

"You're not the alchemy Edward anymore," she stared, still focused on helping him. 24 hours was all they had to make it through. "So his soul _didn't_ need to return only through death... Just something that would be close to him dying. An opening from this world to the next..." she didn't look down at his open wounds.

As soon as he was a safe distance from the fire, she laid him down again and began running as fast as she could. Faster than when one of her older brothers had threatened to cut off her ear. Faster than when Shinko had promised to make her wear a pink dress with lots of frills.

"Help," she choked out, approaching the people who had evacuated. They were all staring in shock at the scene in front of them, not sure what to make of their situation. A few of them turned, but most of them brushed her off.

"I need somebody's help!" she cried, louder. "There's a little boy, not too far, whose really hurt-"

"My son didn't make it," a hollow man's voice said. "There will be lots of boys who are really hurt."

"No, please! You don't understand!" Jay was getting more desperate. Her shock was beginning to disappear, her voice leaking worry and fear. "This boy may not live much longer, but at least he may have a chance- Shouldn't all human souls have a chance to live? What is a human soul worth to you!?"

"I'll help," a voice said after a moment, yet without hesitation. Jay turned to face a woman in her mid-thirties, with scared, yet loving hazel eyes, and light chestnut colored hair. She sort of resembled Alphonse.

Jay nodded once, and they both began running to where Edward lay. "I tried my best," Jay said, her voice hollow once again as the lady began helping. "But I've never..."

"It's okay," the woman said. "He'll live, if we can get him to a hospital soon enough."

"What about within 24 hours?" Jay asked, checking the imaginary clock in her head.

The woman pursed her lips, then began adjusting his bandages. "If that's all the time we have, then we'll make it." She handled the situation so calmly and controlled, Jay couldn't help but admire her aura. This was what her mother should be like.

Her shoulders sagged as she realized she may not ever go back. To Berk, to Resembool, or to home. It hadn't been noticeable before, but she could feel where her energy was connected to. She could feel she didn't belong here... and with how distant she was, she didn't feel like she could belong anywhere again.

Then she thought of the lion.

"You don't look like you're from here," the lady said after a while. She had taken off and cut apart her apron as well, Jay's jacket not sufficing for the bandages he needed.

Jay turned to face the woman. "No, I'm..." she looked at the city in front of her. "I'm far from home. I don't think I have one."

"Yeah, we all feel that way sometimes," she smiled sadly. "Before long, none of us are going to be able to go back to London."

"Not now, anyways," Jay said blankly. "It's actually a really pretty town, in the future. I used to sit by the clock tower every Monday, and it hasn't changed a bit..." but since that one Monday, when she had been in a portal for the first time, everything had changed a lot. Almost completely.

The woman looked at her oddly, but shook her head and smiled weakly. "You have quite an imagination, girl." she looked down at Edward, combing through his hair in a way both caring and worried, as if not entirely certain he would make it, anyways. "And a way with words. Do you have any more stories, of what the far future is like?" she asked. "My name is Trisha, by the way."

"I'd love to talk," I smiled, despite the situation. "I love telling stories, singing... any form of self expression that can be shared with the world is a treasure. Keeping things like stories and songs to ourselves is nothing but insanity..." she blinked back the tears. "My name is Jay. And I have lots of stories about the future. That's where I'm from."

...

Neither Jay or Trisha slept, although Edward had been out cold since the first few minutes. Jay, out of fear started talking. It was what she did when she was nervous. Besides singing, it was the easiest way she knew to express herself.

She would get so far into a thought and then stop, but Trisha asked her not to stop. If Jay stopped talking, time would stop, and Edward would get closer and closer to not waking up.

After so long, Jay finally stood up, her feet probably purple, and long since asleep. "It's been about 24 hours," she decided. It had been the scariest, quickest, yet longest 24 hours of her life. "He said he would be here in 24 hours. The fire should be out and safe by now, can you secure the wounds again before I carry him to the top of the hill?"

Jay wasn't entirely sure Trisha believed her story, but she had trusted her with Edward's life. No one had ever trusted her with a life before.

Probably because she hadn't been so willing to give her own.

Ed seemed thinner and way lighter, so Jay was almost scared to support him. Delicate would have never been a word she'd use to describe the Fullmetal Alchemist- him, or his counterpart. Now he seemed so brittle, she made an effort to carry him so he wouldn't snap.

And it hadn't even been 24 hours.

"I hope this is the right place," Jay said, once she and Trisha and Ed were standing in the middle of the wreckage. "If not, there'll be a lot of blue light telling us where to go."

"You're expecting a portal to appear?" Trisha asked, readjusting Ed's bandages again. Even in his sleep, his expression was of pain. Although Jay expected him to be in so much pain, he couldn't feel anything.

"Yes." Neither she nor Trisha really believed it would. But if there was even the slightest chance, they had to take it.

_Alphonse, please..._ Jay begged. _I trust you, Al, please help..._ She kept on searching, waiting for a spark of the blue portal to appear, but nothing happened. The sun was getting lower in the sky.

Jay hung her head in defeat. Edward would die in London, if her energy hadn't taken apart the worlds before that.

"Jay," Trisha said suddenly, and almost that exact instant, Jay was supporting Edward again, trying to keep him from dying, because they were falling through the portal.

All three of them, including the zeppelin wreckage that had fallen through, as well, tumbled in to the white realm, before falling through another set of doors that would lead them to the alchemy world. Jay barely had enough time to catch just a glimpse of Truth's surprised expression, but it was enough to know that she had finally done something right.

...

"Alphonse-" Jay gasped, her breath caught, as she tumbled onto the hard wood floor, Edward landing on her back, and Trisha somehow managing to neatly avoid the clutter and the hard fall, stepping fluidly from the realm to the floor of the Fort of Berk.

"Shinko," Shinko corrected, staring wide-eyed at the mess in front of her. She closed the portal before any more harm could be done, and quickly helped sort things out. "Al said you could've been in trouble, so he asked me to activate it-" she nearly screamed when she saw Ed, before running to the phone. It took her a minute to figure out it operated differently than Jay's cell phone, but she had the number dialed in less than a second. "We need the medics in the West file room, number 309- yes, this is a level red emergency-" before hanging up.

Within moments, more uniforms rushed in the room, quickly taking care of things. Jay stood back and watched it all, not seeing anything.

"It's okay to cry," Shinko said to Jay, the turmoil not affecting her somehow.

"No," Jay said sharply. "One tear is one too many, right now. These people- everyone, in fact- needs my help, not my sympathy. There's been enough chaos, and I've been putting it off too long-" She met Shinko's startled expression. "You need to do exactly what I say, because if not, both you and I have a chance of dying. Ed- I think it's Ed- hasn't even died, but there's too much death already."

"I know," Shinko said gravely. For one moment, all her carefree aura disappeared, and the two saw eye to eye (which NEVER happens).

...

"Pinch here, here, and here," Jay said, pointing to her wrist, just like the diagram. "This method is fairly simple, so the worst that could happen is me passing out, unless you suddenly developed severe hand-eye coordination problems while I was gone."

"Wow, a lot can change in a day," Shinko frowned, but she took a deep breath and set to work.

Jay's entire body went numb, and there was a sharp jolt, but she knew as soon as she opened her eyes it was right.

"Trisha next," she said weakly. "We don't have much time to lose."

...

The Fullmetal Alchemist looked up from his book. Very little had been able to distract him from the worn pages of an exciting transcript, but he had felt the change almost immediately. His automail nerves were a bit on fritz with Jay around, but only a little had been affected when she left. It didn't affect his automail in the slightest way, but he could feel a difference.

She couldn't have been back... The nerves were reacting differently. Something had tipped the balance to Truth... He began running, but caught in his footsteps. The feeling stopped. His automail was running smooth.

In fact, better than when even before Jay and Shinko showed up. He began running again.

...

Edward Heinrich snapped awake. "Did somebody... just... pinch me?" he asked. His voice was sandpaper in his throat.

"You shouldn't be awake," A girl said. She was standing above him, looking over him worriedly. She had a pretty voice, but her eyes were so cold.

"Why not..." He tried to ask. "What's wrong...? What happened?"

"I'll leave you to rest," she immediately walked out of the room.

Edward tried to sit up, but he was having some difficulty. He had no right arm to support him. He had no leg beneath his left knee.

...

Edward was running, faster and faster. He could feel three changes... and track down his time... from one change to the next. Jay was first, then another, then an incomplete change...

It was so awkward yet natural, like he had been through it all before.

He knew, the moment Heinrich had crossed through the doors, that his counterpart was in this world.

Down the corridors, through that one long hall, and in to the last door- He slammed it open as hard as he could. He knew neither Jay nor Edward was waiting here, but he knew he knew who was there. Even though he didn't know who it was.

He also knew he was getting a headache.

He slammed the door open hard, to face his mother.

Her smiling, loving eyes, her chestnut colored hair that carried the scent of flowers, she was real, and she wasn't going to dissolve into a dream.

"M-mom?" he exclaimed, not happy, not sad, just disbelieving.

She turned, and the moment she met his eyes, even before she said anything, he started crying. "I don't think I know you-" she started.

No. She wasn't his mom. They may have looked alike, they may have seemed alike, but his mother would never, ever forget him. Before he could even think about it, he was running away as fast as he could... No, not running away from her, running towards something.

Trisha had barely stood up, about to go after him, when Edward was back. Back with Alphonse.

"Mother-" he started as well, but Edward cut him off.

"No," Ed said through his tears. "She's still gone, this isn't her... But she looks the same. I just wanted you to get to see her again... To see her smile..."

But Trisha wasn't smiling. She was very confused. Did she really so closely resemble the mother of these two boys? These two sweet children, who had apparently had to have bore the difficulty of a life without care, and without parents...

Before she could even tell what she was doing, she came up and hugged the both of them. "I miss your mother, too," she decided. "Because if she had been with you, you wouldn't have had to go through so much." They had barely spoken a few sentences, but their trials and hardships had all become evident, and even a part of her, as if she had been there with them.

****A/N: Hi, guys! I'm so sorry for the disorganization of the last part. I've grown up under quite a few different languages, and maybe it's just because I was sad, but I kept on trying to switch out of English...? So the sentence structure is all messed up, and the adjectives are a little nonrhythmic, but I hope it didn't mess with the actual story and flow of the plot. Please review if you cried! Also, this was one of the most intense pieces of the story, so I had a lot of difficulty conveying emotion... Please let me know if there's anything I should edit. ****


	8. Chapter 8

****Chapter 8****

****A/N: Hi its me again :3 I've never made it this far so fast in a story before, and I know it's bad to rush through so much, but I'm proud of myself!****

****Shinko: Well, that's a first.****

****Ed (speaking in place of Jason who has still not read -_-!): Yeah, why so pessimistic all the time?****

****Gr.. I really wonder why... Moving on, I keep on forgetting, but before I forget through the next three chapters: Death the Cutie is a really great author, and you all should totally check out her work! Unfortunately, she posted quite a few of her chapters without letting me edit, so there'll be a lot of grammar and spelling errors to get by... but the story itself is so much fluid than mine, and her plot is amazing. (Because I'm one of the characters _!)****

****So, back to the story... Please read, please review!****

"Hi, Roy," Jay smiled, trying to act happy. Visiting the forever cheerful, flirtatious, and idiot-acting flame alchemist had seemed like a good idea at first, but even paperwork could ruin the lightest of spirits. His fake personalty had seemed to melt, and he was just a grumpy 30- well, 16 year old man with too much on his mind.

"Hello, Jay," he said, not looking up from his paperwork, ignoring the quickly cooling mug of coffee in front of him. "Glad to see you're back, hopefully to stay?"

"I tied myself to this world," Jay admitted. "But I feel like my soul, not my energy, is unraveling."

Roy finally tapped his pen on the desk and set it down, pushing the papers hastily away from him, then fully meeting her gaze. "I'm an alchemist, a man of science. Your 'energy' explanation is probably the closest thing I'll be a part of to any religion. I'm not supposed to credit it, but your soul... Your soul may not have anything to do with this world. It all depends on whether you'll accept your role here, or constantly be looking for a new one. You're a really hard worker, Jay. I'm sorry things aren't turning out."

Jay nodded slowly, then a bit faster. "I guess things make sense-"

"But I'm a scientist, not a monk," he winked, cutting her off. "I didn't say anything about it, okay?"

"You barely said anything at all," Jay countered, upset, but at least Roy was back to bubbly-talkative-stupid-flirtatious Roy. "But your silence speaks louder than your words. I think I know a bit better what to make of my situation."

"Thinking again, were you meant to have the capability to make anything of it at all, to begin with?" he asked, picking up his pen.

Jay pondered after that silently, her focus stimulated by the comforting sound of the pen tip scrawling across the papers.

"Wait a moment," Roy said suspiciously. "These are classified files, and only military ranks are allowed in this room... How did you even get in here?"

Jay blinked, as if she herself didn't know, but Roy shook his head, brushing it off. "I've been in here too long, and I guess I need a break... Do you want to talk more outside?" he stood up.

"Sure," Jay said, almost excited. He was the first person who had asked her to talk in a week. The first person who seemed to understand the insanity of what not-talking could really do to a person...

Then again, he had been cooped up in the cozy room with nothing to talk to but lovely mountains of paperwork. In fact, she hardly doubted he was talking to, so much as swearing at them. He probably had a lot he felt he needed to say, as well.

...

"You're wearing your jacket," Roy exclaimed happily to Jay. They were both sitting in the library, both with a cup of hot chocolate, surrounded by more papers- most confidential, but Roy felt no need to impose his anger on something he wasn't involved with.

"Yeah," Jay said. "It gets a little chilly, even indoors. I want to say, but please don't get mad at me, I had to cut it a part. Edward fixed it after the medics... Well, as soon as I got back, theoretically speaking."

"And how is Edward- well, our other Edward doing?"

"He'll be sent to some of the better hospitals as soon as his situation isn't critical anymore, and from there sent to Winry's to get fitted for automail. He's barely conscious, and he's practically begging for his limbs." Jay hung her head in shame. "He can't go back to his world. I tied him here, too."

Roy hung his head, as well. "That means I need to file paperwork on his behalf. People don't just become citizens, they have to be admitted by the military. In other words, by me."

"Oh, then there won't be any trouble at all," Jay said happily, not realizing the skeptical look Mustang wore. for a while, it was just the two of them, with everything to say, and know way to know how.

"It's insanity," Mustang sipped his hot chocolate, not finding any other words. "I had been so excited to move up the ranks. Now I'm a general... but when Hughes died, it seemed all too soon..." Sadness filled his look once again.

"Tell me about Hughes," Jay invited him.

Roy smiled, but his expression quickly dissolved to sadness. "Ever since our... transformation..." he looked down at the hands of a 16 year old boy. "The team had seemed to mention him less and less... but it's not right." He closed his eyes, letting a tear fall to his chin. "If we really did miss him, then why are we so hesitant to act like he existed? He was the best leader, and friend, a man could ever have, and I don't want to forget him. Even if he's not with us... he can still be alive through our words, and our memories."

Jay stared thoughtlessly into her cocoa, blowing on the steam. There was only one thing better than singing, and that was listening. That was, if the words fit together right. Here, they seemed perfect.

"He had a daughter, Elysia... And she's almost four years old, now... Almost a full year without her dad. It's been hard for everyone, but her especially, because no one loved her as much as he did. He was our walking photo album, with pictures printed of her every moment, and they were updated almost weekly."

"And he's gone now," Jay said blankly. She used to be close with her dad. Well, sort of. At least he acknowledged her, and smiled, from time to time. He had spiky blonde hair, and almost always had a cigarette. He always complained he didn't understand why he was 'forced' to be the wealthy business man, mentioning from time to time how he felt he couldn't keep up with the intelligence of the regular citizens. As far as Jay was concerned, he had always been sensible and clever.

"I wonder what Elysia's feeling," she muttered sadly.

Roy looked up. "What about _your_ family? I haven't heard you talk much about them." That's because he was never around when she had her fits of anger over them, but perhaps they needed to be explained in a different light.

"I miss my dad, too," Jay started. "I was named after him. His name was Jean Jay, so my name is Jay Jean."

Roy's eyes widened. "What's your family name?" He asked quickly.

"Olethro." Roy relaxed, slightly disappointed, not noticing Jay as she hung her head in shame. "It's Greek for Havoc."

"Oh," Roy said, not impolitely. "Is 'Greek' a language-" his voice cut short as he reprocessed what she had said. His eyes widened, but he quickly composed his expression with a smile.

"Yeah," Jay said. She frowned, condemning herself to silence.

"Wait a moment," Roy exclaimed at her reaction. "Havoc isn't a bad name or anything-" he cut himself off again. Had she remembered him talking of Havoc while he gave her the jacket? A glance at her expression told him no; simply no.

"My mom says that he's jinxed my family with wide-spread destruction when she gets mad," Jay frowned. "But she says it all softly, like she's scared to speak against him. Or scared of anything, in general."

"What's your mom like?" Roy asked, sitting back.

"She drives me insane," Jay groaned. "She's not mean, not harsh... Just distant, and I can't figure out why! She doesn't talk to me the way she talks to my brothers, and in fact, she barely talks to me at all! She's not negligent, just distant, and she's never harsh, but always cold... She's not the parent I need her to be."

"Does she look like you?" Roy asked, trying to hide his growing interest.

"No, I'm the only one in my family with dark hair, but we have the same eyes, even though hers are blue," Jay had light brown eyes, but the shade beneath her bangs made them look black. "And eyelashes. Our family all carries those similar traits... I guess they've carried through the generations."

"I think you resemble your dad a bit more than your mom..." Roy muttered quietly, not letting her hear his comment. "Tell me," he said louder. "Does your mother like music, as well?"

"She plays piano," Jay said simply. "I remember dad saying she played once... So I decided to play. I guess that's where it started. But I've never showed them..."

"And the last piece to the puzzle: What's your mother's name?" Roy asked, smiling expectantly, as if he already knew.

"Katherine Elise Swiftfoot Olthero."

"Swiftfoot?" Mustang said. "Swiftfoot?" He was soon laughing. Laughing his head off.

"This is why people only knew my first name for the first 7 chapters," Jay growled.

"No, it's not the name... Just the comparison," Roy chuckled. "I'm glad I learned your name, and thank you." Very soon, Jay would be thanking Roy.

...

"Havoc, I want you to gather everyone up to the fort," Mustang said over the line. "I don't know how Olivier will feel about this, she's had a lot of, er, unexpected guests, but I hope things will turn out okay..." They hadn't managed to hide the fact that Trisha and Edward had joined the group, but even without the weapon forges and garages and machine cubicles and extra fortifications, Berk was a huge place. There was a small hospital-like area, a huge library, a decent sized kitchen to satisfy even Fullmetal himself, and tons of extra military uniforms. Nobody had prepared to stay over a week, and that was what they were going to have to resort to.

"Roy," Havoc began. "Are you even allowed on the phone?"

"That was an order, Lieutenant," Roy gritted his teeth. "Hawkeye, Breda, Fuery, Falman, and you, all up here."

"Sir, yes sir," Havoc sighed through the receiver. "Wait, you're already at Berk!? That hike should have taken days!"

"I know," Roy admitted. "It took a while to train our wave alchemist; that was a very intense conversation about scars, hearts, and Alphonse..." He could almost imagine his subordinate's reaction on the other end of the line. "Let's just say we've found a more efficient way to get up here. Hopefully, we'll be able to track our distance better... and no more tearing holes through the West wing. I'm sending a friend down to retrieve you. Call me before you head up, as soon as you find the girl in purple with long pig tails."

"Hi, Roy," Shinko said from the other end of the line.

"Okay then," Roy raised his eyebrows. "See you in a few hours-" he was about to continue, but the line went dead. He spun around to face a cold-staring Olivier, holding the phone cord in one hand and her sword in the other.

"I've fought little brothers many times before," she said blatantly. "But it looks like fighting our little flame alchemist might turn out even more amusing. What are you, half your age?"

"Only 14 years younger," Roy exhaled, praying Shinko would return quickly. Olivier's blade flashed in the dim light. Very, very soon.

...

"Jay," Roy had finally found the girl, with Edward and Alphonse in the library. Alphonse was the only normal one, sitting at a table while scanning through the papers, and Edward was lying on the floor, immersed in the transcripts. Jay, however, out of sheer boredom, was hanging upside down from one of the shelves as she flipped through the pages. Roy finally understood not just how, but why she had ended up with more scars than proper for such a small child. Then again, the fact that she was Havoc's child might have had something to do with it.

"Uh..." he stared, then shook his head. "Shinko wants to talk to you."

"Oh yeah," Jay untangled herself and tumbled down from the shelf. "I was looking for her for a while. Trisha was taking care of Eddie, and she wasn't there, and you were busy with your paperwork, so I didn't know where to look. This isn't really a place I'd like to get lost in." The fort was huge, but Olivier's legions and constant array of weapons didn't make it any more welcoming.

"About that..." Roy started, then he figured it would be best not to tell her. "Well, she's this way, if you'd follow me..." They began walking together down the gray corridors, through the cold shadows towards the East wing. Unlike the first time riding on the ice sled, they had successfully managed to locate the fortress, as well as the proper entrance.

"You should wear your hood," Roy advised Jay. "He picked out the jacket especially for you-" Jay put it on the reversed side, as a light pink bunny rabbit.

"Tell me, where do you get your taste," Jay said disgustedly, but Roy only chuckled.

"Your mother picked it out," he said, too soft for her to hear. "Here we are," he said at last, opening the door. Inside, Shinko smiled, surrounded by a bunch of other matching people in blue, but Jay picked out one face the instant she saw him.

"DAD!?" she screamed, running forward and tackling him in a hug. Havoc, on the other hand, was so surprised, his cigarette fell out of his mouth.

"Holy shoot, no, you can't be Dad!" Jay exclaimed almost as quickly, jumping back. "You're only in your teens, and you'd never carry a shot-gun, and I doubt you've traveled through a series of worlds, wars, doors, and the realm of some freakishly creepy white-ghost-demon thing. No, never mind. Sorry for mistaking you."

Havoc remained silent. Only when the two stood side-by side did it occur to anyone how similar they were- The spikes in their hair, the somehow determined, yet laid-back, yet clever expression they wore at once.

Jay went to stand by Shinko, and seemed to relax, but hide behind her in a way. That was what it had always come to when she was with her family.

"It's okay," Shinko said, hugging Jay. Havoc blinked, and then smiled, then stood by her and patted her head. The way Dad always did. "It's okay."

Jay was lost in the maze of her emotions, but one thing was for certain: she would not cry. She had too much to be happy for, too much to be thankful for, and too much to enjoy.

...

"Elysia... never got to see her dad," Jay was breathing slowly, staring up at the gray ceiling from her top of the bunk. Bunks at the fort were not designed for comfort, Jay was losing more and more sleep, most likely due to the metal beneath her back. One of these days, probably within the next 24 hours, she'd manage to collapse on the spot.

Jay sat up and flipped down from the top of the bed, slipping out the door to the desolate hallway. At first, she was just walking down to the library, really the only place she'd become adequately acquainted with, but a few lights on in the hallways another direction lead her down that separate path. Somebody else was awake, carrying a lantern towards her direction.

Jay froze, motionless. Depending on who was up, she could be on very serious levels of trouble. If it were one of Major Olivier's subordinates, she'd be dead, and if it were an alchemist, she'd be found out immediately. Eddie was neither, but still on bed arrest, and she highly doubted Trisha would be sneaking around at this hour. Instead, she ducked behind a wall and peeked out to find another small, crouched figure, also hiding, as if he knew she was there... What was Alphonse doing awake at this hour?

He looked the same way she did when she was afraid of getting caught, but he sensed her presence, and was quick to figure out no one capable of punishing him would be hiding, as well. "Who's there?" he said softly, walking closer to Jay.

Jay frowned. She could either step out and reveal herself, but what more use would that be if they were headed the same place? A small smile playing on her lips, she stepped back to the main hallway, and began walking quickly towards the library.

"Wait," Alphonse said, only a slightly bit louder. "Who's awake? I'm not gonna tell on you- Edward? Heinrich? Are you up!?" he began following her, so Jay picked up her pace even more, careful to remember the turns through the corridors.

"I highly doubt you're missing an arm or a leg," he was now running to keep up with Jay, which forced her to pick up her pace even more. "Roy? Big brother!?"

Jay dashed into the library, grabbed what she could only hope was the right book, flipped it to a promising page, and then ran back to the entrance, nearly crashing into Al.

"Jay!?" he exclaimed, surprised.

"Hi, Al," she said, casually yet awkwardly. "There's been something I've been thinking about for a while... Do you think you could help me out?" She pointed to the page, where a complex transmutation circle and diagram was spread through the sheets.

After a few minutes, he had set the lantern down by the table, and they were both bent over, studying it. "Another portal?" he asked, concerned. "It leads to the center of Amestris, but it looks a little different..."

"That's because it crosses through times, too," Jay pointed out a few different markings. "This will lead me to a few years into the past..."

"And straight into the middle of a war," he said coldly. "No, Jay."

"Al, please," she begged. "This _has_ to be done."

"What makes you say that?" He said. "What difference can you make a couple years ago that me and my brother weren't dying for, trying to change?" His voice wasn't harsh or mean, but perfectly reasonable as if nobody had ever really sacrificed as much as he had.

"I may not have lost a part of my body to a demon, but I've definitely given a lot of my soul, where needed, to everyone's welfare," Jay said with equal confidence. "I may not have lost an arm or a leg, or even my entire soul within a piece of armor, but I _saw_ it happen to someone right next to me. And I think there's something I can do, to keep it from happening again."

Al looked back at the transmutation circle. It was only two years back, not six, and it didn't seem anywhere near Resembool... So there was no worry of her getting involved with _that_ situation... But what had happened around that time that was so important? Possibly nothing... Which was why that was the safest single place to let her go.

"No more than two minutes," he cautioned, grabbing a piece of chalk.

"Hopefully no more than two seconds," she nodded, standing back to watch. Maybe it was just luck that he agreed, or maybe just that she had worn the cat side of the jacket. Either way, she wasn't complaining.

After a moment, he clapped his hands, clenching his teeth as the bluish light dimly illuminated the room in a washed out glow. "Okay," he said. "Any more than a set time, and I will have to stabilize the portal and jump in after you."

"Yes, sir," Jay rolled her eyes, but smiled as she crossed through the doors. She had appeared in the next world even quicker than the last, and the realm was only a glimpse in her eyes, and she could barely recall if she had seen Truth. But whether or not she had, his message was clear: he wasn't expecting her to live.

And neither would he, this time, for this person, either.

Jay had barely stepped through the portal when Alphonse did a huge double-take. It was one year back, not two. He hadn't been paying attention, but she had flipped the pages and had him draw a cross between two of the transmutation circles, with entirely different outcomes. He viewed his work, eyes widening with terror. He might just have to throttle her when she came back through the portal. That is, if she had come back at all.

Jay nearly lost her balance, but managed to support her movement against the sides of the blue police box she had appeared in.

At first glance, the street side looked like a regular, quiet London night. The streetlights were dim, the house lights were completely off, and all but the crickets were silent along the road. Except for towards the edge of the community, where quite the commotion seemed to be occurring in that one police box.

There was already a man of about 30, with hazel eyes and rectangular glasses, holding the phone, staring at her with an expression of complete shock and disbelief.

At the entrance was a woman in her early 20's, with short black hair and cloudy gray eyes, holding a pistol, also wearing a look of surprise. There was a flash of the alchemic light, and she morphed into a small teenage boy with hair that reminded Jay of a palm tree.

For a moment, they all stood staring at each other. "Okay," Jay said quickly. "Creepy lady-thing with a gun. Through the portal, Lieutenant Colonel Hughes." He didn't hesitate to follow, while the palm-tree head stared, frozen, watching as the portal closed.

Both Maes and Jay stumbled through the portal the moment Al was about to go through, resulting in the three of them tumbling to the ground.

"Hughes!?" Alphonse exclaimed happily at first, before realizing all three of them could have died that instant. "Jay, if you didn't survive, I would have killed you."

"That's something Fullmetal would say," she said, still pinned beneath Hughes, but she quickly untangled herself. "Sir, you're hurt!"

"I'm fine," he blinked, grabbing his shoulder, still dripping blood. "What happened?"

There was a violent shift in the air pressure. Al recalled from the past year, the newspapers had never mentioned anything about Maes dying, but both him and Lieutenant Ross possibly being held hostage in the war? Only Ross was recovered, but there had been no evidence for Hughes.

Jay's memory changed, as well. Roy had never mentioned anything about his loyal friend dying- only a mysterious disappearance years back. "I found him," she answered out loud. "I found Hughes."

"What- What's happening?" Maes groaned, the pain in his shoulder still sharp. "My wife- and my daughter-"

"You've been missing from them for about a year," Al calculated. "The war is over, sir, and you'll return to them as soon as possible."

The look in his eyes softened. "It's almost her fourth birthday." Then his expression turned suddenly violent. "I've disappeared from Elysia and Gracia for over a year-" he cringed. "How could I have done something so- so terrible-"

"No, sir," Jay shook her head. "If you hadn't done what you did when you did, you might not have a family to go back to. You had to leave them for a year, to save them for a life time, and all of Amestris is indebted to you for it."

"I'm glad everyone is alive and well," a murderous voice said. "But you need to stop bringing people into my fort! We're running out of space!" All three of them spun around to face an angry, very sleepy, Major Olivier. She was wearing pink pajamas with a blue bathrobe tied hastily around the waist, her sword _still_ hanging by her side. "And it's the middle of the night, too! You couldn't have waited until morning? Or brought him back last night? Oh, great. He's bleeding all over my floor, now. All our staff is asleep, so going to the hospital won't do much good-"

"That's okay," Jay smiled, happy. "Shinko is good with wave alchemy, I'm sure she'll be able to help. Al, could you escort our Lieutenant to the hospital? I'll wake Shinko up. Major, you can go back to sleep-"

"I have no idea how things work in your world, but I don't need a little girl giving me orders," Olivier marched along.

****A/N: Hello, once again! I can't tell if this chapter is shorter or longer, but it's rushed again, and I pretty much chucked the handwritten, I'm sort of improvising-****

****Shinko: C'mon! The hand written had all the filler-sketches!****

****Ed: Ha, right. Nobody draws better than me. If they wanted, they would look up the pics. It's that simple.****

*****sweeps out flea-sized ShinkoEdward from paper* *sprays with milk to ensure decontamination* Moving on, there's more clear-up...****

****I had originally planned it so every time they crossed through a portal, they would cross through the realm of Truth, then go through the doors to appear on the other side of the portal. But that takes too long. I'm trying to shorten out the realm until it disappears, because really, nobody likes that place, anyways. Well, not yet. It gets better. Eventually.****

****As for the family trees, it just occurred to me in the sketches how much Jay looked like Havoc. So he was to be her father on the other side of the gates. But what about her mother? We all know Catherine's, er... ******_**unique**_****** relationship with pianos, and Jay was a musician, so it works out. Plus, Catherine and Havoc were cute together to begin with, so I just carried out the idea. In the alchemy world, however, Jee's parents are unknown, and obviously not Catherine and Havoc. Apparently Riza is Jee's aunt, although Riza doesn't have any known siblings... *coughcough*, yeah, I really should have thought this piece through a bit more. So for now, please review! ****


	9. Chapter 9

****Chapter 9 ****

****A/N: You guys are probably tired of my commentary. I'm sorry. I'm sorry my story is really sloppy, too, but I know have a deadline... Don't forget, readers. My final post for the Sisterhood will be Friday, Oct. 3. *Falls into fangirling mode* Okay, besides that... When I mentioned Riza was Jee's aunt, one of my many gracious and loyal and super awesome amazing reviewers helped me clear this up: She's just a family friend. ****

****Wow, if only the solution to all my problems was that simple.****

****I haven't looked at the rough-draft in a while, so this is mostly off of memory and what sounds cool when. But I promise, I will work super-duper extra hard to describe thoroughly... I've mostly been summarizing, and my story is starting to sound *gasp* boring... But, NO! THE ENDING IS AMAZING, AND I CANNOT LOSE ALL MY READERS WHILE TRYING TO GET THERE so I promise i'll do my best :)****

"What about the hospital!?" Shinko exclaimed, waking up right away.

"Al and Ed say you're probably the best at alcahistory, since you're good with wave alchemy, and somebody needs you there, so c'mon," Jay didn't leave much of an explanation. Shinko couldn't help thinking about Havoc as the two walked through the cold stone corridors. Families could be so complicated.

...

"Hey, Winry?" Ed asked into the phone. Normally he didn't like waking up; he could sleep even longer and deeper than Jay, but this was an important matter. He was so happy, he couldn't help smiling as he avoided the urge to fall back asleep.

"Ed!?" Winry exclaimed from the other end of the line. "Hey, wasup? Is something wrong? You never call."  
>"Well, something... yeah, something's wrong," he decided. Everyone was gathered: A sleepy Roy who had put on his jacket inside out in his haste to arrive, Al and Jay, who showed up together, trying to settle a half conscious Maes into the hospital bed, Hawkeye trying to let him rest and preventing Breda, Havoc, Falman, and Furey from overwhelming him. Edward 'Eddie' Heinrich was still in such a state of shock with his missing limbs, he was scarcely able to sit up and watch everything, Trisha at his aid, and Shinko, with dark circles under her eyes, yet not pausing for a moment to scroll through more of the alchemy books. Before long, Berk's library was going to be completely read through by the team.<p>

"Something's wrong," Edward repeated. "But it's going to be fixed, soon. When's the next ride to central down there? How soon can you be? I think Elysia and Gracia need to be paid a visit."

"It's almost her fourth birthday," Winry said softly. He could hear the clattering of tools, a slam on the table, and what sounded like a trunk being pulled from underneath the bed. "I can't stay long, but the last train leaves in... 10 minutes. How soon are you going to be there?"

"I'd say a couple hours," he cringed as the blue light seemed to electrocute Maes' shoulder, then turned back from the group, ignoring their turmoil. "And how soon do you need to be back home?"

"Where are you?" she asked, avoiding the question. "There's no way you'd make it from Berk to Central in a few hours."

"I can be there in an instant," he argued. "The only thing that's going to take time is Maes-" he quickly covered his mouth with his hand, the metal nearly knocking a tooth.

"Edward," Winry said coldly, still packing as she tugged on the phone cord. "Whatever you're planning, had better not be bad for anyone's health."

"Define bad," Edward said, risking a glance back. Maes was trying to get away, his wound barely healed, and Al had to hold him down while Jay used the acupuncture points to put him back under. "Or health. Either works."

"I'll take your word," Winry said smoothly. "But if your word is wrong, not only do you not get any apple pie, you have to drink a glass of milk."

"Deal," Edward said firmly. "And tell them I said hi." Winry waited until Edward set down the phone, not even bothering to hang her own cord up, staring at her small traveling trunk in front of her.

"Well," she said at last to herself. "I'd better get going." She tossed a few more things around the room, trying to make quick yes and no decisions, before throwing a coat and boots on over her pajamas and running out the door. "Edward," she said to the night air. "Did I really hear you say _Maes_?"

...

"Guys-" Edward called as everyone rushed around the room. "Hey, guys-" Nobody could hear him. Growling in frustration, he clapped his hands together, placed his hands on the wall, and hit the newly-formed metal gong as hard as he could with his metal arm. The sound waves were nearly visible, and everyone froze under the pressure. Heinrich even passed out again, not too long after waking up again.

"Thank you," Fullmetal said, dusting his hands off as the wall turned back to normal. "Okay, we have the option of going to Central, where we may disperse. All those in favor of leaving now, raise your right hand-" Trisha glared disappointed, as Eddie had no right hand to raise.

"Okay then, we're all going to Central," Ed said automatically, not even bothering to count the votes. "Heinrich needs proper care and automail, anyways, so we'd be going to Resembool together... anything else?"

"I can't go," Roy lowered his head. "I only made it through the first 2% of the files they've given me."

"Fabulous!" Edward smiled broadly. "Gather what few possessions you have, folks, the portal gets opened at first light."

"We don't have any difference between day and night, it all looks the same up here," Olivier growled, appearing from seemingly nowhere. "And I thought curfew was a couple hours ago, men! Unless somebody would like to tell me why I'm no longer the major here!?" Everyone was silent. "And I might just ban alchemy here," She glared at Fullmetal, who shrunk under her stare. "Because I do NOT want to wake up to anymore gongs!" She didn't move it whatsoever, but her sword somehow shifted to catch the light and everyone's attention. Nobody moved until she had left, and when she did, they were all heading back to bed.

... (The next day)...

Winry knocked on the door of the Hughes' residence, looking slightly flustered.

Elysia quickly padded up to the door and peeked outside, before letting Winry in. It was always Winry anymore.

"Onee-Chan, you're back," She smiled, but her eyes weren't as bright or playful as they had once been.

"Hello, Elysia," Winry said, her breath shaky. "I'm not the only one who's back, though. Somebody wanted to wish you a happy birthday."

Winry opened the door wider, to reveal an extremely happy, yet disbelieving Hughes standing at the entrance.

"Elysia!" He exclaimed, running to embrace her.

Elysia blinked in response, then burst into a smile. "Daddy, you're back," she cried happily. "Daddy, they told me you'd never come, but you're here!"

"And I'm never going to leave you again," he promised her. Picking her up and cradling her, he went to greet Gracia as well, who responded with just as much surprise, but equal enthusiasm.

"Told you," Ed stepped into the house beside Winry, holding her hand.

"Fullmetal," she cried with relief, in awe of the joyful reunion in front of her. "How did you do it!?"

...(10 minutes earlier)...

"Okay, does everyone have their luggage?" Edward asked, finishing the chalk circle. Everyone was standing together, and they had even managed to find a spare wheelchair for Eddie.

"Clear," Riza Hawkeye confirmed, ignoring Roy as he wept for her departure.

"Alright then," Edward clapped his hands, and everyone was surrounded in the blue alchemic light.

"They're going to regret doing that," Major Olivier said casually, sipping her coffee as they disappeared.

"Why?" Roy asked.

...

Jay was the first to start screaming, curling up and gasping.

"Ah," Shinko moaned, clamping her hands on her ears, trying to get past the deafening pop. "The change- in air pressure," she gasped.

Al was the only one completely unfazed, using his air alchemy to help him adjust. "Edward?" he asked Fullmetal, who was lying hopelessly on the ground.

"Shut up," he responded weakly, forcing himself to not be sick. Of course, it didn't help that he was pinned beneath the total of Roy's remaining subordinates, but the experience was in every way unpleasant. Only Trisha and Hughes had thought to yawn, popping their ears, regulating the pressure and avoiding the pain.

"Although I do have to admit, I'm a little tired," Trisha laughed after she yawned, adjusting Eddie in the wheelchair. "This boy eats as much sick as he will when well. Taking care of him requires just as much energy as taking care of three average children! It will be interesting to see him progress into the teenage years," but she risked a glance at Ed, knowing all too well how he would be.

"You're not going back to your world?" Shinko asked, over her pain already.

"Jay tied me here," Trisha smiled wearily, then shifted to take a look at Central, where they had appeared. "Besides, I don't really have a place to go back to..."

...(Present Day)...

"All by myself," he sighed at his stupidity. "But we're all here, and all is well..." they walked outside together, meeting up with everyone in the front yard.

"Riza, you look amazing," Gracia laughed, walking outside as well, letting Maes and Elysia spend some quality time together.

"I look 14 years old," the delicate blonde raised her eyebrows. "But I have to say I'm enjoying the changes."

"You're no longer wearing the turtle-neck," Gracia noted. "Your jacket is cute."

"Thanks," Riza smiled widely. "I kinda don't have burn scars, so it makes things a lot easier."

"Burn scars?" Gracia asked worriedly. "Oh, the things that go wrong in alchemy!"

"And families," Riza said quietly as Jay walked past. She immediately joined up with Jean, who was happy to see her as well.

"Jay," he felt awkward saying her name. "Can I ask you a question?" Jay nodded.

"Who am I married to in the other world!?" he exclaimed. "I've never been able to stay with a girl friend-"

"Take a chill-pill!" Jay cried. "You're only 16, and besides, counterparts aren't exactly the same-"

"That's okay," Fuery snapped a picture of her. "Look, we can match up exactly who she looks like, won't that be our best bet?"

"No way!" Jay cried, flipping on the bunny side of her hood, hiding her face.

"That's the hoodie I picked out with Major Armstrong's sister," Jean said. "Her name is Catherine, but she already turned me down before-"

Jay hastily reversed her jacket to the cat side and ran, hiding beside Alphonse, who was checking up on Eddie and Trisha. Edward, despite his trauma, was happily talking and laughing like a normal child, excited about his automail. Trisha was smiling with him, but she couldn't hide her extremely worried expression.

"What's wrong?" Al asked her as she faded from the crowd.

"Oh, nothing much," she smiled. As if losing a home, leaving a world, and watching someone maimed in front of you wasn't much. "It just... might be a little difficult to move around, afterwards..."

Al smiled sympathetically. "Ma'am, don't worry. Edward, er, Elric, has already covered the cost for Heinrich's automail expenses, and you both have a place to stay." Well, a house on the Rockbell's property would take a little while to transmute, but they would have a place to stay by the end of the day.

Trisha smiled, thankful, and at once began to hope that things would continue to run as smooth, if not better, in the once wonderful London. "It's like I have a family here," she laughed happily, and went back to talking with Eddie.

Al turned to Jay, completely surprised to see her crying. "What's wrong?" he exclaimed, hugging the cat stripes.

Jay sniffed. "Can you set me up a portal?" she asked. "I think it's high time I go home. This family here-" she gestured to the subordinates, foreigners, and citizens. "Looks complete. But that's from an outside perspective. I can't shake the fact that I don't belong with it... But maybe that's okay. It's not like I don't have enough to mend with my own family, anyways. I mean, if I actually tolerated them... Would we be able to be like what we have here?"

"Every family is different," Alphonse admitted, recalling the mess of his own. "But it will be perfect to you, as soon as you feel like you belong. That's what families are about, is completion... And with that, perfection."

"Did you hear that!?" Edward cried happily, appearing out of no where. "I'm not lying, he really _did_ call me perfect! I told you all I was a great big brother!"

"Of course!" Alphonse smiled happily. His brother had always treated him for what he was, even when others had refused to see what was within the 7ft tall figure of titanium. "Big brother is the best!"

Jay smiled weakly, but she was quickly pulled aside by Shinko, who was once again uncharacteristically serious. "You keep on changing your mind," she said.

Jay nodded, not saying a word.

"You never change your mind."

Jay shrugged.

Shinko shook her, but Jay responded mutely. When she finally looked up, Shinko was crying. "I've been trying to figure out so long... What is it hurting you? We've always been together, and we've always known what to do for each other... But you've shunned me."

"Shinko-chan, I'd never-" Jay began angrily, but Shinko muted her.

"You've shunned yourself, as well!" Shinko exclaimed. "How can you expect to accept people if you can't put up with yourself?!"

"That's why I'm leaving!" Jay exclaimed, the heart-wrenching words tearing through the air as she said them out loud. Nobody around them hadn't even sensed what was going on, but the air between Shinko and Jay was stone cold and frozen with shock.

"So you're running away... from something you can't put up with," Shinko said bitterly.

"Since when can I not put up with my best friend? No, my sister!" Jay cried fiercely. "And I know I can't run away from myself, but maybe leaving my problems here will make them go away for you guys! If I'm dealing with my own demons, I don't want to have to hurt you as a result!"

Shinko stared, wide-eyed and breathless for less than a moment, before whipping away, her pigtails catching the light as they followed her. "You already have," she informed her, not looking back. At least, not physically. But she would from then on always wonder where the mental support of her life-long friend had been, afterwards. The shock was so fresh, it could have been as dramatic as her living on another world.

"Al?" Jay said after searching to find him. She'd already covered up her anger from the fight, but her expression was still grave. "I'm ready... so could you just set the portal up quickly?"

He nodded and grabbed a piece of chalk, not offering much more of a response.

"Leaving so soon?" Ed asked, him and Winry standing next to her.

"Not a full two weeks ago... you guys were so excited to see me off," Jay said, expressionless. Ed didn't respond.

"I'll help," Shinko said after a minute, watching Al draw the base.

"Do you know how to do the portal?" He asked, taking a break from the expansive drawing.

"Yeah, do you think I'd send my friend somewhere she doesn't belong?" Shinko responded, not impolitely. "If that's where she wants to go... Then that's where she'll end up." She got down on her hands and knees, as well, beginning the symbols and transmutation pieces.

"It's a double portal," Riza observed as soon as Shinko had finished.

"Yeah..." Shinko's voice cracked. "It is."

"So I may not go home?" Jay exclaimed angrily.

Shinko pointed. "London... England," at a few symbols. "Friday, October 3rd, 2015," pointing to each of the correlating points. "You'll get home."

"Activate it, then," Jay said, not quite commanding, but still firm. She didn't even say good bye, through with everything she had left behind.

She couldn't deny whether she had looked back, either, though.

...

"LONDON!" Jay screamed through her tears. "HOW MANY TRANSMUTATION CIRCLES DOES IT TAKE TO GET TO LONDON!?" This time, she was in a large, old-fashioned building, but it couldn't have been _too_ far back. There was a rocket ship in the center, on a launching platform.

The portal glowed, about to activate towards it's next dimension, but she had arrived quite in the middle of a commotion: Edward Elric was in the rocket ship, and Alphonse, no, _Alfons_, was launching it.

"Goodbye," he called as the platform started rising.

"Edward!?" Jay exclaimed.

"You again!?" He shouted through the glass.

Thinking of her last words to say, of any choice, she quickly scanned her mind and blurt the first thing on the list. "Act like you've never met me!" She cried. Then she face-palmed. If he had known her, would anything that have happened, actually happened? So much could have been avoided... But better safe than sorry. At least she knew where- more specifically, _when_-, she was.

Before anything else could be said, Edward was already out of sight. A loud explosion threatened to rupture her eardrum, so she quickly turned around, where a man was firing a pistol at the rocket. Of course, his attempts were quickly dismissed, so he focused on his next objective- Alfons.

"Eh?!" Jay cried, watching as the bullets whizzed pass. He could have been trying to hit her, too. But Al was still facing the controls, watching his brother leave.

The man aimed carefully.

The moment he pulled the trigger, Jay pushed Alfons aside so the bullet soared right above her arm and into the machine. "Through the portal," Jay commanded him, tripping him into it so he didn't have much of a choice, anyways. She paused only the briefest of moments to take off her shoe, throw it as hard as she could... The bullet hole that cut through it didn't stop it from hitting the pistol, itself. Jay jumped through the portal, and finally landed someplace familiar... The roof of her own house.

Al lied, stunned, facing the sky, and Jay nearly tripped over him in her attempts to leave the previous scene, but the portal deactivated, and she was home.

The small memory throbbed around in her skull. She had just thrown a 2-week old hiking shoe at a man who had tried to kill someone.

Something told her that the excitement would not end, at home or not. Trying to ignore the excitement, anyways, Jay flopped down on the shingles and closed her eyes against the bright sun.

"What the heck happened... Where am I?!" Al asked, stunned, shocked, and partly upset.

"I saved your life," Jay didn't open her eyes. "And you're on the roof of my house."

"Uh... What?!" Was all he could respond.

Jay sat up. "I guess that alchemy stuff's messed up the both of us for good, whether are friends are in it or not. But we can't go back, now, anyways." She took a look at Al, him still dressed in his WWII dated outfit, still tired and worn from the stress. "We need to get you fixed up... You might be August's size?"

"August?" He asked, puzzled. And still possibly angry.

"He's my oldest brother," Jay said. "The one who taught me to fight and get beat up and stuff. He's actually really nice, if you can beat him in a fight."

"Have you?"

"Once. Hopefully twice, after all Roy's help," she shrugged. The flame alchemist himself had only been fighting for a few months at that point, actually following Ed and Al's example, but he had known enough to guide her through the motions. "We'll get you some proper clothes, see about lunch, and hopefully figure out what to do next from there. His room is probably right beneath us, so we'll be able to climb through the window. Follow my lead," she got to her feet. "And try not to fall and die."

He smirked. "I don't have much time left, anyways," he said quietly.

"What was that?" she asked, turning slightly.

"Nothing," he said. "If Ed's world is real, then I suppose this one is, too."

"It's not a different world," Jay said, watching her footing as she scaled down the wall. "It's just a different time period. Had you stayed, you would have died."

Alfons didn't respond, but settled for trying to follow after her.

...

She had to climb down to the ledge, but managed to open the window for Alfons, and they both inched inside. Once they had finally made it, Al, although not Jay, was more than surprised to find what was waiting.

A tall, blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy was hanging upside down from the loftbed that only took less than a fraction of the room. In the other part of the room was completely clear and spotless, except for the desk that had been hastily crammed to the side. In total, the room was huge, and the crammed furniture only added to the appearance. Alfons stared in wonder at the odd trinkets, but Jay frowned as her brother flipped down to face her.

"You've been missing for two weeks," he said, standing in front of her.

"You say that like you cared," Jay said with a sweetdrop. "Alfons, I'd like you to meet August," she said, not facing him.

"Who's this _Alfons_?" August asked, also ignoring him, focused intently on Jay, as if mocking her. "And what the heck is he wearing?"

"This Alfons is your best friend mom and dad never met until today, and he happens to be wearing that two-tone tee, dark jeans, and blue hoodie you've all but abandoned."

August shrugged fairly. "Fine. Have it your way, if you like. But I hope you haven't forgotten since two weeks: No pain, no gain. And to gain what you want-"

"I have to go through the pain of beating you up," She said, yawning. "Hit me with your best shot, because unlike you, I've actually made my two weeks useful."

August stepped forward, flipped her cat-hoodie down, and held her bangs out of her eyes. He was the only one who had ever done it... And the only one who dared.

Because Jay, when she wasn't hiding behind her bangs, when she wasn't hiding in her emotions or anger, was even more kawaii then Shinko.

"Fine," August smiled cruelly. "We all know... Whatever little sister wants, she gets." With seemingly impossible speed, he brought his hand down and stepped forward with a punch strong enough to rip through a wall.

Alfons gasped, but Jay was already standing right beside where the motion would have landed. "We all know that's not true," she said, unamused. "But if you're giving me the opportunity, I'd be a lavender's fool to turn it down." And she kicked through the air.

Al soon understood why the room was so empty. Had there been even the smallest object lying around, it would have been destroyed. Jay and August moved so quickly, their movements were practically blurs through the air. August made hard, direct hits, showing off massive amounts of brute strength, but Jay relied more on her agility to manipulate her as needed.

"I see you've gotten faster," August nodded in approval. "But do you have the endurance?"

"Stop making me wait to find out," Jay complained, out of breath. "I don't have patience, but we'll soon find out." She waited for him to make his attacks, reserving as much energy as possible, and although tired, she managed to hold up just fine.

Alfons didn't bother to sort through the kicking and flipping, but he was certain Jay had done something right when August fell to the ground.

" I win," she said, not even the slightest bit out of breath, though she looked all sweaty and tired.

"No," August said, completely unfazed, but plenty upset. "You just caught me off balance-"

"If there was a flaw in your form, it's not my fault," she inspected her nails, which was probably more just for attitude, considering how torn and messy they were. "But I still knocked you to the ground, and it was still a legal hit."

August waved his hand. "Get cleaned up. You've been missing for two weeks, mom will want to talk to you. I'll help your friend..." he trailed to stare at Alfons. "What's with the outfit again?"

"I found him in the back of the filming studio," Jay lied smoothly. "He got his part covered for today, but didn't have an extra set of clothes besides the rehearsal costume."

"Liar," August picked out quickly. "But I guess I'd rather not know."

...

"I said get cleaned up," August frowned as Jay walked back to meet him.

"Dude, I showered and got clean clothes," she pouted. "If you're expecting me to get a manicure for mom, you might as well be expecting a cure for cancer." Al shifted at the comment. Jay had chosen an olive green tank top with matching cameo pants, bulky combat boots, and an old military cap that completed the look. "I look like I never left. Look, I even wore something cute!" Jay said proudly. She had tied her hoodie on her waist, as if it made everything better.

"I thought it was a cat," Alfons said.

"It's reversible as a bunny."

"It's a panda."

"What?" Jay asked. She took it off... as a panda. "Maybe they transmuted it back wrong and I never noticed..." she muttered. Turning it inside out, it appeared as the pale pink bunny. "Hm," she mused. The panda went better with her outfit, so she turned it inside out again... to find a cat. She turned it inside out _again_, to find a bunny. Then a panda.

The Elric brothers had defied the laws of logic once again. She had a three-ways reversible hoodie.

"You need to talk to mom," August said even more urgently. "In fact, if she finds out you're here, dad might take the day off."

"Okay," Jay agreed, needing no more motivation. "I haven't seen dad for... A few months now?"

"He came back three days after you left," August informed her, turning to Alfons. "Wow, you look almost like a regular teenager... Slouch a little bit."

Alfons slouched.

"There," August smiled approvingly. "Now no one will suspect a WWI aerospace engineer!"

"How long did it take to work all that out of him?" Jay asked by the door.

"About two minutes," August rolled his eyes. "Although I doubt I believe any of it. Now get going!"

...

"Hi, mom." The two most dangerous words that could have been spoken had finally escaped her lips.

Katherine Olethro was standing at the kitchen counter, whipping together a sugar-cookie recipe, so deep in thought she hadn't noticed her daughter walk into the room, but nothing could have blocked out the sound of her voice. She was so surprised, she dropped the measuring cup, but turned to face Jay.

"You're back!?" she exclaimed. "We had police searching everywhere, we were all so worried-"

"You might have been, Jay shrugged. "But I can list five people who definitely weren't..." August, Adam, Allen, Aden, and Alexander were all probably the worst brothers a girl could hope for.

"You're safe and well," Katherine sobbed, about to embrace her girl, but Jay held her hand up.

"Please don't hug me, mom."

"What!?" Katherine asked softly.

"I don't want a hug from you." Jay repeated.

"You don't want a hug... from your mother!?" Katherine repeated, shell-shocked.

"I would very much like a hug... that is, if I had seen you as a more mother-like figure," Jay said, her voice expressionless, but her tears brimming her eyes.

"Jay... what are you talking about!?" Katherine asked, hurt.

"That girl that always came home with me?" Jay began. "With the super-long hair who always wore purple?"

"She slept over every weekend," Katherine nodded. "Jay, what does this have to do with-"

"She didn't sleep over every weekend, mom," Jay cut in. "She slept over every day because she didn't have a home. I asked for the bedroom on the top floor so I could climb to the roof easier, and we laid out blankets and watched the stars together. When it got cold, she slept in the garage..." Jay's tears flowed slowly as she recalled memories of the past years. Roasting marshmallows on a little bonfire on the garage floor, hiding between shelves of books and boxes whenever one of her brothers approached..."

Katherine could only stare, wide-eyed.

"Mom, she didn't have a mom to look after her. To buy her pretty clothes or get her fun toys. So everything pretty and fun you gave to me... I gave to her. And you never, not once, knew about it. You didn't even seem to want to figure it out."

"Where is she now?" Katherine choked.

"She found a mother," Jay admitted, thinking of Trisha. "And a sister, and two brothers, and lots of friends... I guess that's why I left, to make sure she had that all."

"Jay," Katherine repeated, slightly angry. "If you would have asked, I would have given anything-"

"I asked for a lot," Jay said, her voice finally starting to scratch up. "You were never mean, you were never angry... But you never payed attention. You gave me plenty of luxuries and toys, but the one thing you didn't give was what I needed most: Your acting as a mother. I couldn't turn to you when I was upset, mom. The person I turned to was the person who turned to me. It was just me and Shinko, and now she's gone..."

Katherine couldn't blink her shock away from her tears, and she couldn't deny she was angry, but although she was lost in the surging emotions, she sought out the best one and smiled. "That's okay, Jay Jean. I'm here for you now, and I promise I will be for as long as I can." And Jay finally let her mom hug her.

August and Alfons had been watching from the doorway through the entire conversation.

"So these are what families are like," Alfons smiled at their progression.

"Most are better," August admitted. "But even though we were of to a bit of a rocky start... Nothing is too far impaired, now is it?"

...

Jay had been leaning against her dad for hours, listening to her mother play the piano. Of course, she couldn't really deny him hugging her, since he had practically tackled her at the door... and there wasn't much she could do about that. But Mr. Olethro was correct. Jay had been living music for most of her life, but Katherine could play the piano almost as well as Jay could sing.

"So, the birthday girl is back," Aden said. He and his twin, Allen, were both lying on the floor ontop of a stack of pillows.

"You're off by a few days," Jay yawned, not opening her eyes. Shinko knew she hated making a deal out of it, but had given her a miniature spa basket. Jay had returned everything except the strawberry cream lotion, and even then kept it hidden at the bottom of the pack. No lolitas aloud on her scale- but Shinko was gone. She might have to change that a bit. Maybe even force herself to wear a jean skirt some time.

"Yeah, you were missing for a few days, but we still need to wish you a happy birthday," Allen said. Jay hung her head. Her brothers had chosen the worst job possible- they were training to be beauticians and hairdressers. That meant she and Shinko were the number one test candidates.

"My hair was green for over a week," Jay complained.

"We promise, no more blonde dyes on black tones," Aden assured her, trying to resist the urge to laugh. "Believe it or not, we did miss you. And we want you to feel welcomed back."

"Fine," Jay rolled her eyes. "But I still have something, too. You can't show off your talents without me bragging about mine."

"Alright," August stood up, stretching. "I thought sparring once a day was enough, but-"

"My talent isn't sparring," Jay stood up as well. "It's singing."

"Since when?" Adam asked. He was the leader of his and his friend's garage band.

"Since forever," Jay smiled sadly. It was a funny thing, how distant she was with her family, yet how easily she was able to mend with at least, begin mending. They had a quite a ways to go, but...

"Rain drops, mountain air," she began. "I wanna leave, wanna be somewhere..." The melody was sweet and flowing, rhythmic and gentle at the same time. "Salty tears and laughing smiles... Where you are is where I want to be..." She couldn't keep herself from smiling as everyone stared. Her voice had seldom sounded as beautiful as it did that moment.

As soon as she had finished, the room went silent.

"Have you always been able to sing like that?" Jean asked.

"No," she responded quickly. "I started in kindergarten when I met Shinko. But I've improved so much... I remember how terrible I used to be," Jay laughed.

"That was amazing," Adam praised her.

Alfons, who was 'sleeping over' with August, started to nod, too, but he was suddenly elapsed in a coughing fit. Each breath was a painful hack from his lungs, and he couldn't contain it well enough to hide the blood that showered his palm.

"It's nothing-" he tried to say.

"Nope," Katherine said. "There's no more negligence, here. Do you..." she couldn't help but feel awkward saying it, but forced the words away anyways. "Do you not have a family, either?"

"I had a brother," Alfons said quietly, his throat hoarse. "But he left..."

"Well, it looks like you're staying with us," Mr. Olethro said immediately. "We've got 5 boys, what's one more?" Katherine glared coldly, but didn't hesitate to call the ambulance.

"I think I have a few days left," Al said weakly. "My lungs have been filling with blood, and there are some spots that are really sore..."

"So it's lung cancer," August confirmed. "The sore spots are tumors. It must have been caused by the fumes..." He looked up to face his family, not bothering to explain his past. "Yeah, a few days in the hospital should fix him up."

"What?!" Al exclaimed. "It's incurable-"

"Dude, I bet you're both glad to be back to modern technology," August yawned. "Nothing's incurable here..." Al stared, wordlessly, causing August to grin. "Wow, our family's really messed up, but I'm glad you're gonna be a part of it!" Then sirens wailed outside, and everything fell apart from there.

****A/N: Wow, almost done! My epilogue is tomorrow, and is cannot wait! I tried to base this piece off of my family relationship, it's more oc than it is fma (which i dont own) (sorry id figure id just mention it) but my relationship with them is not nearly as intense, so yeah...****

****uh... i have a huge secret to tell you all... agh, should i wait until the end!? once i explain myself, i garuntee things will fall into place... yeah, i'll wait till tomorrow... ****

****i also suck at ending stories, which is why there will be a sequal, called immortal adventures (title to later be explained), and basically a collection of ministories. Please review! ****


	10. Chapter 10 and Epilogue

**Epilogue- **

****A/N: Hi guys, mini A/N before you continue. The song from earlier was one Jason and I wrote together, so technically, we own the rights. Yes! Music is a part of this story, after all! It sounds way better on guitar than it does from the paper, though. This is the end... Or is it? Please check out Immortal Adventures after this- a collection of continuing mini-adventures! Some are just for fun, some still connected to the story line... but they're all great :3****

****So please read, please review, and please enjoy :)****

Shinko collapsed as soon as she entered the doorway. "I'm home," she called into the floor.

"That's nice, sweetie, could you please come in before someone gets hurt-"

"Hi, Ms. Trisha," Winry called as she stepped into the house, tripping over Shinko. "Oh, hurry, stand up, Al and Ed are on their way-" Winry exclaimed, but the door opened again, and soon all four were trapped.

Ms. Trisha came running from the kitchen, still holding the batter spoon, and helped untangle the mess of kids. "You all seemed in such a hurry," she fretted. "Was everything alright?"

"Just busy," Winry stood up, tired. "Would you like me to finish cooking, Ma'am?" She asked politely.

"Actually, Edward should be awake," Trisha glanced at the clock. "Could you help him with his automail?"  
>"Of course," Winry saluted, before dashing up the stairs. It had been a month since he had been fitted, and only a few weeks since the surgeries, but he was still struggling to adjust to the awkward metal pieces.<p>

"Oh, no," Alphonse moaned. "We didn't break another board, did we?" he examined the floor where they had all fallen. "Brother, can I have a piece of chalk?"

"No problem," Edward sighed, handing it over.

"You look really tired," Trisha noted, as she and Shinko walked towards the kitchen.

"Yeah, I guess," Shinko shrugged, putting on a fake smile. The watch in the pocket of her sweater seemed to weigh more, probably having collected frost from the chilly air.

In fact, Shinko herself began to leave frost footsteps when she got nervous. Being a 'wave alchemist' was going to take a while to adjust to.

"You miss Jay, don't you?" Trisha smiled sadly, sliding a batch of muffins into the oven. It had taken nearly a week to transmute the house and all the appliances, but the Rockbells officially had new neighbors.

"I let her do what she wanted," Shinko admitted, a piece of paper pinched between her fingers. Absentmindedly, she began to fold it, until she was holding a crisp paper airplane. A wisp of thought crossed her mind, and she grabbed a pen and began writing. She used the pen to ink a small portal, and tossed the airplane in before erasing the marks.

...

Jay had fallen asleep almost every half hour after waking up. She had no idea how she had survived the two weeks in the other world, getting hardly any sleep, but she was determined to catch up on the missing hours.

Mockingly, her brothers had left her to Alfons as soon as he had gotten out of the hospital, leaving him to drag her to her room whenever she collapsed. August stood by, laughing. Yeah, that family really did have a ways to go, but they were making progress, however slow it was.

Al had barely laid her down, before knocking her off the bed to avoid her head going through the portal that had appeared on her pillow.

She was still out cold as she hit the floor.

Alfons picked up the paper plane, and carefully unfolded the page, reading the cursive.

_Jay, I miss you, _it said. _I really wish you were here. How bad are your brothers, right now? You probably want to be here, too. Coming back IS an option, by the way. You can bring Alfons with you, assuming he's alive and well. Did it work? Is he alright? Things are so organized and chaotic, it hurts. But of course, you have your own decision. I've never been able to force you into anything. But please reply, soon, even if it's for the last time. I love you, Jay. You're the best sister I've ever had._

Alfons looked up from the creased paper, then over at Jay. Thinking carefully, he flipped the page over and began writing.

_I miss you too, Shinko. You'd have no idea how hard it is without you... _Al tried to see things from Jay's view. _The brothers have gotten slightly more tolerable, though, and I don't want to leave a budding relationship. I love you, but this is my family. I have to find out if I love them, too. _He looked back at Shinko's side of the letter. _Alfons is doing well, he got out of the hospital a week ago. He's by my side, more than even August, who he's great friends with, and I have the haunting suspicion he has a bit of a crush on me. _Al smiled at Jay, about to conclude his letter. She'd never get a reply, and wouldn't likely find out any time soon. _I miss you, too, but that's not any reason to be sad over it. We've grown up together, so we'll always be a part of each other, right? I might even wear a skirt sometime on your behalf. _Maybe. _Best of luck with the Elrics, say hi to Winry, with love to Trisha, and pat Ed on the head for me. Goodbye, Shinko._

Al placed the letter on the portal, and watched as it melted away. Yes, goodbye alchemy, and goodbye Edward, but they had promised they'd never forget each other. They were always going to be part of each other, now, right?

...

Ever since Jay had started getting proper sleep, all she saw was black. There was so much nothingness, it reminded her of Truth's realm.

"Yes, a bit like that."

The voice resonated through the thick air, not having a source, just a sound.

"This is what my realm has come to," it said. "Believe it or not, a lot has changed in the brief moments you were gone. No more sins... No more lies... So what occupies the space between worlds?" The air was still completely black, but it was somehow shifting around her. "This is a place for doors, young Jay. But when there's nothing holding them apart..."

The black door didn't suddenly appear, but she was suddenly at it's threshold. The flame-cold tentacles licked at her skin, burning with frost. Murderous, tortured eyes stared at her from below. She could feel the back of the ground disappearing, leaning her into the darkness...

There was nothing to keep her from falling, but she never did. Almost as suddenly, she was sitting on top of the gold lion. Every where he stepped, glass appeared beneath him. No more black, no more white... A surface, finally. In fact, it may have not been glass. But it was cold and smooth and beautiful.

"You're a gate-keeper," the lion thundered, somehow softly, into the darkness. "Yet you relied on others to do your jobs... Sins who made sure they would be the only ones with access..."

The glassy material expanded, the surface hissing where the black substance eroded.

"It burns..." the voice wept. "I made sure to pay them back for their job, the full responsibility was in my hands-"

"Wrong," the lion said, firmly but calmly. "It has always been, and forever will be, in my hands. You paid them back with another debt that belongs rightfully to me-"

The lion paused, than began laughing.

"Who can own a soul? Not even I," he boomed. "No, people are only mine because they choose to follow me, Truth. You have tried for eternities to end Two of the Five Great Human Sacrifices... To pay back your debt, when in reality, the only one you were indebted to, was me."

The glass spread around and upwards, forming a crystallized sort of room. Light was reflecting off of the lion onto the walls... No, the light was from the lion.

"So where will you go now?" The lion padded and laid down on the floor, stretching his paws in front of him, letting Jay slide to the ground. "There's no more lust, no more envy, greed, wrath, pride, gluttony, or sloth for you to hide in... So when will our truth be revealed?"

The only black left was a smudge in the ceiling. Like a teardrop, it fell towards the ground and landed, right between Jay and the lion.

The teardrop expanded into a smooth surface as well, a darker version of the glass, and although it was fading quickly, Jay had enough time to catch a perfect reflection of herself before it disappeared.

"And there you have, the Truth," the lion gleamed smartly at her.

"I don't understand," Jay found herself saying. She was finally able to move and talk, indicating that she really wasn't in the dream-like state she had thought she was in.

"Destroying... Is so much easier than making," the lion closed his eyes. "Everything that had existed in the previous realm is now interlaced between these seven walls," he said.

The room didn't look like it was just seven walls. The glass reflected upon each surface, giving it an infinite lasting appearance.

"I know," Jay admitted. "But who said I wanted the 'easy' way out of things?" That was the reason she had taken care of Shinko. Put up with her brothers. Moved back with her family. Because yes, life had always been far from easy. "I guess it hurts more knowing I've been destructive, even more so than the sacrifice it takes to create something beautiful."

The lion looked skeptically at her, as if expecting more.

"I learned a lot from my friends- Edward, especially," she shrugged, "-before I left. But honestly, I don't believe in painless lessons or equivalent exchange. I believe in getting something for what it's worth."

"And that's not equivalent exchange, because...?" The lion's eyes glowed happily.

"Everything has different worth to everybody," Jay said solemnly. "I take fairly what I have given fairly."

"And what about the things that are priceless?" His tone was like a father questioning an ignorant child.

"Then I'll work as much as I can, to pay off all that I can," Jay said. "If it's not a debt that can be covered with a year's worth of wages, then I'll spend the rest of my life- using the rest of my soul- to make things fair."

"I see," the lion growled. Hasn't he always seen everything? "You're a very diligent worker, Olethro." Havoc. Widespread destruction. "Just remember... What can destroy, can also rebuild. I wish you luck in your life to come." She would need it. Big brothers were a handful to put up with.

...

Shinko unfolded the letter, surprised at how quickly it had popped back onto the table. She read carefully... The handwriting was perfect, but Jay would never suspect anyone having a crush on her. So what would Jay's actual reply have been? But that was the last time. They were never going to get to see each other again...

Shinko went to stand on the porch, watching as the last of the autumn leaves scattered. It was so beautiful... But was everything beautiful cold?

She walked out to the yard, but only for a few paces. A large, golden transmutation circle, sort of like a portal, appeared in front of her feet. She stepped into it, but she would have went, anyways. The gravity seemed to center towards it, and soon she was falling through.

...

Jay found Alfons sitting on the edge of her bed, staring at her pillow, when she woke up. "Argh, did I pass out again!?" she exclaimed to the floor.

"Yeah..." Alfons said, debating whether or not he should explain the situation to her. Maybe later, but definitely not any time soon...

"I need to stop falling asleep," she yawned. "I keep on getting nightmares..." She was about to leave the room, but a flickering light caught her attention. When she turned, there was a large golden transmutation circle in front of her.

"No!" She exclaimed sharply. "I'm _done_ with alchemy-" she tried to back away, but the gravity seemed to pull her towards it. Her, and Alfons.

"Agh!" They cried as they fell through. On to a cold, glassy, smooth surface.

"My head..." Alfons moaned as he sat up.

"My back..." Jay gasped. Al had unfortunately landed on top of her.

"Jay!" Shinko cried.

"Edward?" Edward and Edward said together.

"Me!?" Al exclaimed to Alfons.

"... What?" Winry stared at the mess in front of her. "Okay, this is getting confusing," she frowned. "Edward, Eddie, stand next to each other... Over there. Alphonse, Alfie... Jay and Shinko..." She quickly sorted through them, and Jay finally understood where she was.

It was the Glass Room, with each of the seven standing next to their own section of wall.

"Finally," a voice said. A gentle, all commanding, powerful, fatherly lion like voice. "To be honest, I was expecting some one else to figure that out, but I guess she may not be entirely awake yet..." Jay put on a very well practiced pouting expression, frowning at the lion in the center of the room, who only smiled in response.

The majestic creature turned to the rest of them, dipping his head in approval. "I have chosen you," he began. "To replace the faulty gate-keeper. Your qualities have shown, that not only can you change fates," he glanced down at Jay. "But are able to change your own," he said to Winry. "I name you all the care-takers of the realm of Truth, each of you exhibiting extensions of my own qualities, channeling my own power."

Edward Heinrich raised his hand. "What makes you think we're willing, sir?" He said, very respectfully.

The lion smiled. "Would you really have it another way?"

Edward was silent.

The lion began walking around the seven. "The previous gate-keeper tried to repay his debts with sins, but in the end, it turned all around on him. In his place, I name you the seven eternal-living Virtues:" he stopped by each child and looked them in the eye as he said their name. He turned to Winry, first, his golden eyes glowing with intensity. "I name you Winry Rockbell, the virtue of chastity."

He slowly padded forward, paws thudding softly on the ground, towards Edward. "I name you Edward Heinrich, the virtue of Humility.

"Edward Elric, the virtue of kindness." The lion stopped. "I believe Truth had stolen something from you, as well..." He dipped his head, and tapped his mane to Ed's forehead, who was staring, wide-eyed and shocked, heart racing a million miles an hour. When he stepped back, Ed's arm began cracking and shattering and falling apart.

"That took forever to build-" Winry started, but she gasped. As the layers of metal peeled and shattered, they came to reveal something that Winry hadn't programmed into the machine at all: A real, flesh-and blood arm. The same went with his leg.

"Th-thank you," Ed stared at his limbs, but the lion had already moved on.

"Alfons Heinrich, the virtue of patience," he looked him in the eyes, and was immediately filled with the warm, golden color.

"Shinko, the virtue of temperance," he smiled.

"Alphonse Elrc, the virtue of generosity.

"Edward Heinrich, the virtue of humility.

"Jay Olethro..." the lion paused, as if amused. "The virtue of diligence. You are all far from perfect, but you will use your gifts to heal those around you. As one, and only as one, can you be immortal, and can you act in my name..." his eyes gleamed. "As you have the many times, before. Farewell, my young alchemists, children, until it calls for next..." He smiled, and they all stood in silence inside the room.

****A/N: Ha, told you all I sucked at endings XP. But good thing it's not really the end! Immortal stories is my sequel, and each chapter is a ministory. And, I did tell you all I had a secret...****

****I've never read or watched Fullmetal Alchemist. Brotherhood or Original. You just read a fanfic from somebody who has no idea what they're doing. ****

****But of course, there's an explanation! ****

****I came to my friend one day, the happiest ever. I had just came up with the best story idea ever: A young boy and his little brother had recently lost their mother to an incurable sickness. They devised plans to use a science, magic, and art they had learned (from a supremely awesome teacher) to try to bring her back to life. But of course, that goes against the laws of not only people, but the universe... So there would be consequences. Consequences so bad, they would have to spend a few years of their pained lives trying to find a way to reverse their mistakes, after finally learning their lessons. ****

****-_- seem familiar, much? ****

****I was so upset when I first found out about Fullmetal. I was so certain I could do a much, much better job than the original author (I still cry at night because Edward dies to often XP), but there are some things she's come up with that I'd have never thought of. ****

****Anyways, its pg13, so I can't watch it, but I was still allowed to ask my friends about it and stuff. I fell in love with the characters right away, and I was so excited I got to use them in my own work. So yeah. Please review. I don't know how much I can edit on this, but I will gladly accept advice for my next stories! Please review!****

****And again about the lion: the lion is the universal symbol of courage, and courage is using every virtue at the point when it's needed, and virtues are the opposites of sin... so yeah. in the hand written version, truth and Truth come into play a lot more, and they seem less important here, but they're not, so sorry.. I was really scatterbrained with this piece. Short stories are so much easier, as you'll see in my sequel (yet to be posted)... ****

****Please review! Especially since I have not read the series- I want to know how I did. Hope you enjoyed- and until later, ****

****AiJay :)****


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